The people on Cao Herui's side were swept away by the typhoon. Fortunately, the big one continued to move up the river. They could not move because there was still a small one blowing around them.
On Lu Zhou's side of the mountain, Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan listened to the report from their subordinates. They were relieved to know that the wind did not blow the houses here. As long as the big one passed, there would be no problem.
The rain seemed to have something to do with the typhoon, but it also seemed to have nothing to do with it. It was still raining. In fact, they could go back at this time. However, the two of them were worried that the wind would blow back again. After thinking about it, they went to the old people's side to ask about the situation.
The old people were well arranged. They did not need to do any work at all. Under the shed, they and some of the children could enjoy the treatment of a bed. Needless to say, the children were everyone's hope. The old people did not care what others thought of them. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had to respect them.
Whether they lived their lives to do things for their families or to help repair bridges and roads, as long as they worked, they would definitely contribute to this society. In the process of paying the rent, they were actually contributing to the country. They could not be old without someone to take care of them.
Even if they did not know a word, even if they were stubborn, some of the rent they paid would be used for disaster relief and road repair. Who dared to say that they did not get any benefits? At least, they could live a stable life because the country used the money to form an army to protect them.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan had planned to set up a special fund to settle some old people who could not do work. It was not pity, but respect. When they respected the old, they also respected history and heritage. At the same time, they also respected themselves.
Lu Zhou's old people indeed enjoyed a blessing that they had never thought of before. They had a shed to shelter them from the rain and a bed under them. They did not have to worry about catching a cold. There were also people who specially prepared several meals for them a day. When one was old, one had to eat less and eat more. They were the group of people who were taken care of the most.
No matter when they were hungry, they could ask someone to cook for them. As long as they took out the menu, the person in charge of cooking would introduce them to them. However, if there were some things that couldn't be eaten, they would definitely not cook for them. Usually, everyone could even drink some wine a day.
Because of this, the elders treated the officials as their own sons. They even felt closer to them than their own sons and daughters. Zhang Xiaobao and Cuckoo naturally became their grandson and granddaughter in their hearts.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan didn't have much time, so it was impossible for them to accompany the elderly every day. However, there were many children here. Wang Juan would teach these children how to dance, draw, sing, and so on. After teaching them enough, she would let them take turns to play with the elderly in the nursing home.
Even if their drawings were not beautiful, their singing was out of tune, their dancing was not beautiful, and there were always repetitions, the elderly did not hesitate to exaggerate. These elderly were all lonely old people who had no one to take care of them. Why would they care about good or bad when they could enjoy the happiness of a family?
At this time, when Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan came over, the elderly showed a kind smile. The more they looked at the two sensible children, the more they liked them.
"Grandma Li, don't move. Your leg is not feeling well, and it's raining. It's painful to walk. Don't move. Xiao Bao and I are coming." As soon as Wang Juan and Zhang Xiaobao appeared, an elderly lady came down from the couch with something in her hand to welcome them.
Wang Juan and Zhang Xiaobao quickly sped up and ran to the elderly lady, one on the left and one on the right. This was not an act. Wang Juan's family had always been like this. The rules in her family had always been like this. Children must learn to be filial. Although the family began to appear after the liberation, the bigger the family, the more importance it attached to filial piety.
Zhang Xiaobao had a good grandfather who taught him what it meant to respect the old and love the young. This made Wang Juan feel very magical. Generally, people like Zhang Xiaobao did not receive much help from society since they were young. Usually, they would complain about society. However, he was an exception. His original idea of making money was to repay society.
Of course, many people did not agree with his way of doing things, but those orphanages were indeed built, and the roads in those mountainous areas were indeed built. While some people wanted to kill him, there were also many people who wanted him to live a long life.
The old lady didn't know what the two children were like in the past. She only knew that she was good to these lonely old people, and that was enough. She pulled the two of them back to the couch, one in each hand. She even used her pinky finger to hold a bag on the hand that was holding Wang Juan.
"Come, this is the honey money I prepared for you two. It has been prepared for more than a month. You can eat it today." The elderly lady sat on the couch and opened the bag in her hand. Inside was the honey money wrapped in oil paper. It was specially made for Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan. Although she was old and could not do much work, it was not a problem for her to make some honey money.
"Eat it quickly. Your Grandma Li's honey money is the best. In the whole county, your Grandma Li's honey money was the best. Unfortunately, she stopped making it later." Old Hong said next to her.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan did not hesitate. They each took a piece of honey money and put it in their mouth. They also licked their fingers and nodded to show that it was delicious. It was indeed delicious, but it was too sweet. The two of them did not dare to eat too much.
"Granny Li, is your leg still hurting that badly? Let Xiao Bao rub it for you. "Wang Juan smacked her lips and said to the elderly lady.
The elderly lady moved for a while, nodded and then shook her head. "It still hurts a little, but it is not like before. Every day, someone will help me rub it with medicinal wine. When the weather is good, there is no problem at all. Now it is cloudy and rainy, so it is a little uncomfortable."
As the elderly lady spoke, she touched Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan's heads with her hand. Her face was full of smiles. In the past, when she was in pain, she could not sleep at night. Since she came to the nursing home, with the prescription given by the Zhang family and the people who specially rub it, as long as the weather did not change too much, she would be fine.
Wang Juan went over and pressed it. She covered her knee with her small hand, thought for a while and said, "In a while, I will ask someone to blow bubbles into hot water. Put it here, and it will not be so uncomfortable. There is no way to cure this disease. We can only take care of it. Grandpa Hong, is your ankle better? It seems that you need to eat more fish bones and fish liver. I will ask someone to use that as the base to cook a pot for you. "
The reason why Old Hong could sprain his ankle was that he lacked calcium. There was no calcium tablet here, so he could only adjust it with diet. There were some vitamins in the internal organs of fish. Eating some crispy fish bones could replenish some calcium. Otherwise, if he only ate bones, the human body would absorb too little calcium.
"Okay, okay, I will listen to you two. We old people have accumulated good karma in our previous lives. Otherwise, how could we meet people like you?" Old Hong looked at Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan and said excitedly.
He, who had no children, was already prepared to die, especially when he encountered the flood. At that time, his body was already very weak. He didn't expect that after the flood, nothing would happen to him. Instead, he found himself in a good place, which was a nursing home. He ate well, wore good clothes, slept comfortably, and even had someone to play with.
His body and bones were gradually getting better. In addition, there were children to play with him every day. He did not want to die. He was ready to live for a few more years and enjoy a good life.
The other old people also came to talk to the two children. In their hearts, the two children were their family. No one could hurt them.
After talking for a while, Zhang Xiaobao asked about the business. "Grandpa Wang, how long do you think the rain will last? Will the wind come back after one round? There is still a lot of work to do. We can't always hide in the mountain. "
The old man, who was called Grandpa Wang by Zhang Xiaobao, was blind in one eye. However, his only eye was very sharp. He could see the Qi of the earth. In the past, he had helped to find the silver mine. No one knew how he saw it. Anyway, every day was divided into several periods. He looked at a certain place and finally knew whether there was a mine or not. It was a very powerful ability.
In addition to looking at the mine, he could also see the Qi of the earth. If there was more Qi of the earth, it would flourish. If there was less Qi of the earth, it would fail. Through this, he could predict the weather. With the help of the other old people, he could predict the weather very accurately.
Grandpa Wang also knew that everyone was hiding in the mountain. No one was working in the province. These few days, he had been thinking about this matter with the other old people. At this time, when he heard Zhang Xiaobao ask, he said, "The wind will not come, but the rain will only stop after five or six days. These few days, it will be very heavy. We have to prepare early."
"Thank you, Grandpa Wang. In a while, I will go back and tell my father to protect everyone. I will definitely not let anyone get into trouble. In that case, we will be washed again next time? Sigh! This year, it has not been stable. "
Zhang Xiaobao did not doubt the old man's words. He thanked Grandpa Wang while complaining about the bad weather.
Old Man Wang chuckled and said, "Don't worry about the house being washed away. It's just a little bit of land that will be washed away. The main thing is that the two rivers were dug. The water that flows from the surroundings and the water from the mountains will flow along the rivers. It's much better than before. This is all thanks to the good officials."
Hearing Old Man Wang's words, Old Man Hong also sighed with emotion, "Yes, without such a good official, let alone this time, we would have had to give up the last time. This time, we have two big rivers. Even if there is more water, we are not afraid of it. It's a pity that we can't help much. If I were ten years younger, I would also help.
Xiao Bao, you won't blame us, right? We can't do anything to help. We can only eat and drink. We don't know when you will be able to earn back the money your family spent this year. How about this? This year's harvest is a little less, but the rice is good. We can exchange some poor rice from other places and pay some rent. We will only pay to your family, not to the government. "
The other old people also agreed. They had seen the money the Zhang family spent time and time again. Of course, they did not know that the Zhang family had already made up for this loss. With so many local specialties and things that could be used as tributes, not only did the Zhang family not lose money, but they also made money. Especially those things that had not been sold, they would make more money in the future.
This was the advantage of logistics and trade. The old people who did not know about these things felt that the Zhang family had lost money and wanted to find a way to compensate them.
Zhang Xiaobao and the others wanted to do so. They shook their heads hard and said, "No, no, my family didn't lose money. Those things that we exchanged were shipped to other places and we made a lot of money. My family is rich, so we don't need to worry about this. Even if we lose money every year, my family can still afford it."
Zhang Xiaobao's words were very honest and did not hide anything. He wanted to reassure everyone. Otherwise, they would always think that this matter would affect their health. For Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, problems that could be solved with money were not problems. The main thing was that they had money.
Wang Juan saw that these old people's eyes were full of doubts. She had no choice but to explain some things in a way that they could understand, including how to operate and buy and sell.
The old people did not know such profound things before. After listening to Wang Juan's words, they were all stunned. They had never thought that the Zhang family still had a way to make money during the disaster. However, they were not jealous and did not think that there was anything wrong with what the Zhang family had done.
After hearing this, Old Madam Li said, "Now we are relieved. It turns out that money can be earned in this way. Yes, the family of a good official can't lose money. We have to earn more. The more money we earn, the more money we can take out in the future. The river here has been repaired, and the seaside dikes have been built. Those houses are also good.
It's enough that we have a nursing home to live in. Now other people have good houses. In the past, we couldn't get such a good house and yard even after several lifetimes. It's a pity that such a good official will leave one day. I don't know what will happen to the official who comes back. "
Old Madam Li's words made the other old people silent. They also thought of this matter. Now they were living well. Not only did they have a stable place, but others also had a new home. The school was still under construction. When the time came, the children could go to school.
There were also those medical centers. Now they did not need to spend money to see patients, and they only needed to buy medicine. In the future, they would only charge less for medicine. This was all because there was a good official. If the good official left and a new official came, it would be easy to handle. If it was someone like the one surnamed Shi, it would be easy to handle. He did not care about anything and would do what he did here.
But if a powerful official came, wouldn't he be jealous of this place and take some of the benefits that were originally in his hands? How were they going to continue living like this?
They wanted to prevent the good official from leaving, but that would delay the good official's future. Everyone fell into hesitation.
"Look, others are worried, right? Persuade them. "Wang Juan touched Zhang Xiaobao and said softly.
Zhang Xiaobao nodded. He had already thought about what would happen after his father left. He was not worried about the official who would take over. He said to the group of old people, "Grandpa, don't worry.
"Grandpa and Grandma, don't be afraid. No one can make things worse here. Even if my father goes to other places, things will still be done as they were when my father was here. When my father leaves, it will be impossible for the military and politics to be integrated. The Provincial Governor will be in charge of it, and there will be a Military Secretary.
The people below would also be chosen. When the time came, if the new provincial governor could follow the rules, then nothing would happen. He would accumulate enough political merit and be promoted. If he dared to make a move against the common people, dared to make a move against the infrastructure, then he would be directly made a figurehead.
Those chambers of commerce here are all our family's. When the time comes, he will have no money and no people. He can only watch helplessly. If he wants to write a memorial to the imperial court to change the people here, then there is no need to worry. As long as he writes it, the one who will be replaced is him. As long as the commercial activities here are stopped for two months and then find someone to impeach him, he will be finished. "
Zhang Xiaobao told a part of the arrangement. In fact, he had other arrangements, but he could not reveal them too early.
Wang Juan also knew that Zhang Xiaobao would not do things so simply. If that was the case, would he still be Zhang Xiaobao? If things were not handled well, the backup plan would be fatal. However, now that Zhang Xiaobao did not say, she did not want to get to the bottom of it. The more she knew, the more tired she felt.
The old men and women did not know so much. As long as they knew that the days in the future would be as good as when the great official was still alive, they were happy.
Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan accompanied these old people and chatted for a while. When they saw that it was almost time for lunch, they left. They still carried the bag of honey money, ready to go back and let the family have a taste. It was really well done.
The rain was still falling. Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan knew that they would not be able to go back these few days. If they did not come out, they might be able to let the people stay below. Since they had come up, what if they were washed away by the flood behind them when they walked back in the heavy rain?
Moreover, the people below could only hide in their homes and put the things in their homes on the wooden rafts, ready to be rowed out at any time when there was a flood and connect with the other wooden rafts to form a piece of land.
This was already a tradition that the commoners were prepared to carry on. Every family had a wooden raft. In the future, when there was a flood, just like before, they would bring everything that they could carry. Then, everyone would work together in an organized manner.
Now that they had all run up the mountain, the people could do other work here in the rain. Some were picking vegetables, some were starting to build wooden houses, and some were repairing bridges and making boats in places with pools in the mountains.
There was no wage for this, it was considered voluntary work. After all, in the future, a tourism and resource development group would be established. When the time came, the group would take out a part of the profits and use it to benefit the local people. Now, the people were working for themselves and their descendants.
The people were very serious about their work. Anyway, there was nothing else to do now. They were not feeling well all day long, and people who were used to working were like this.
Now that the rain had not stopped, it was more difficult to pick mushrooms, and there were not many of them. However, the vegetables grew very quickly. A lot of ferns were picked, and they were all used by Zhang Xiaobao to make pickles. Although these ferns could cause cancer, the probability was too small. If it was really calculated, breathing could cause cancer.
The main thing was that they tasted good, and they could also supplement the other nutrients the body needed. They could not deny everything just because one aspect was not good.
While they were busy, Cao Herui and the group were also busy thinking of ways to bring down the trees. They were not thinking of building wooden houses, but they were preparing to set up wooden rafts.
"What kind of weather is this? Not only is the wind not enough, but it is also raining heavily. Now, this small hill is going to be submerged. Hurry up, do it quickly, or else no one will be able to leave alive. "
Cao Herui stood at the side in charge of commanding. With his physique, he could not do it. The others were trying their best to tie the broken trees together. They did not bring any saws or other tools, only a few small axes. It would be very tiring to use these axes to cut the trees.
They directly gave up on the trees that were too thick, and only cut down the trees that were not too thick or thin. It was convenient to cut down the thin trees, but it was useless.
The people on this ship, including Cao Herui and the other two, only added up to 58 people. The original shipwright was 55 people, and these people needed to make 10 wooden rafts. It was not that the wooden rafts were not good, but that the wood was wet.
In the water, without people standing, only half of the raft would be exposed. If people stood, the whole raft would be in the water, and it was the same below the people's calves.
It was not a problem for five or six people to stand on the raft, but once there were more people, there would be no need for the water to flush them in. The 55 shipwrights were already very hard, but Cao Herui and the other two still felt that it was too slow.
The three of them were actually a little regretful now. Firstly, they regretted coming back. Secondly, they felt that when they were looking for a place just now, it would be safer now if they didn't look for that valley. That valley was good for hiding from the wind, but that place was really too low. All the water from other places gathered there.
As a result, they could only continue to go to higher places. When they went up, the wind blew so hard that they could not stand. They bent their legs, bent their waists, and lowered their heads, barely able to withstand the wind. When the wind passed, they began to get busy.
Seeing that the water from other places was gradually rising, if they did not hurry up and set up the wooden rafts, they would all die here.
The person in charge of the ship also helped. After setting up 10 wooden rafts, everyone felt a little more relaxed. However, Cao Herui and the other two were still a little worried, so they asked people to continue. They thought of the land connected by wooden rafts during the last flood, and felt that it was very useful. This time, they also wanted to try it.
"Master Cao, do you think these wooden rafts are enough? Now I know how strong the wind is. It is a pity that we did not prepare enough. If I had known, I would have brought some wood from the ship. If those wood were dry, we would not be afraid of being soaked. Master Cao, do you know where to go next? "
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