Great Tang Idyll

Book 1: Chapter 74

White clouds at leisure in the blue sky, the flow of the small river ran dry.

Wind blew, rain gathered, a far distance away was where the source was by.

"One of the ponds lost one third of its water in only just three days; six ponds would mean just less than eighteen days. Think of a plan quickly."

Just after getting up in the morning, Wang Juan took Zhang Xiao'bao to 'inspect' the six ponds at the manor. Water was used the most during the Spring Tillage. Seeing that one-third of the pond's water was scooped away already, Wang Juan was a bit anxious.

Zhang Xiao'bao watched from the side. The people of Ge Manor kept bringing water back to their manor. He also knew that the people of Ge Manor were afraid of the drought so the water for the fields was obviously given to them already. However, the Ge Manor still dug a pit in front of their own house and after covering it with planks, they filled it with water taken from the Zhang and Wang Manors.

"Speak, are you just going to watch them take the water away? When the water gets into the pit, half of it permeates out every day since the surrounding area is dry."

Wang Juan looked at Ge Manor's farmers fetching water like they were looting and felt a little unhappy. The water that they needed to use could be placed into a tank; doing that was a complete waste.

"If they take it, then let them take it, is it possible to stop them? How about this, starting from tomorrow, get a few people from the Ge Manor to come over. We will take care of their food and arrange them beside the well. As long as someone comes to fetch water, get them to help. Fence up the surroundings of the pond. If they want water, let Housekeeper Ge come over to give them the amount they want all at once."

At first, Zhang Xiao'bao felt that it was fine for these people to take some water. It was nothing more than digging a pit. When the soil around the pit becomes saturated water, the pit can be filled. However, he suddenly realized that after the pit was full, these people might dig another pit. Then, the water would truly be wasted.

"I agree. The water can't be thrown away casually by them now. They won't understand even if we explained it to them. If they were our manor's farmers then that would be great since they would listen to everything we say."

Wang Juan also felt resigned about this. This was human nature. If something really needed to be complained about, then it would be about the master of the Ge Manor.

Hu'zi, who was following behind them, was called over and after giving him instructions, he immediately set out to make arrangements. From early on, he was already not pleased with these people. He thought of carrying out the plan today but due to the instructions of his Young Master and Young Miss, he had no choice but to wait until tomorrow. He understood really well. The people at the Ge Manor brought shame to their own Master, but Hu'zi himself could not bring shame to his Young Master. Farmers must have the consciousness that farmers should have and servants must also follow the rules of the servant.

After a while, Hu Zi had made arrangements already and had returned. He spoke of the words he wanted to say.

"Yeah, it's right to think like this. When you and other farmers do things outside, it's no different from the Master doing it. Do things with a sense of reason. Don't be afraid of causing trouble. If something really happened, regardless of the reason, your Master will help you. Even if you make a mistake, your own master will punish you accordingly; there is not chance for other people to meddle in."

Wang Juan was satisfied with Hu'zi's actions and the thoughts in his mind. On the side, she talked about how she was used to being the domineering one. In the past, when she handled affairs, it was like that too. When she made mistakes or disrupted the benefits of the locals, it was not up to the people there to manage her. When she returned, whether she would be punished or not was a different question, but her colleagues would definitely unite together with her.

She also thought the same too, but Hu'zi did not expect that the people in his master's family would be this tyrannical. After thinking about it, he asked: "Young Master, Young Miss, If trouble was caused outside and the government was provoked, would you interfere?"

"No matter who you provoked, as long as you're doing things for the master, if during the process, because you were thinking of doing something good for the master and you made a mistake, then find a way to escape. Even if the government comes, there will be the Master to back you up. Even if you injure someone for the master, the master might still reward you."

In this matter, Wang Juan never compromised and spoke with absolute determination.

This time, Hu'zi didn't say anything anymore, but he was happy in his heart. He never doubted the words of the Young Master and Young Miss. If he wasn't following them by their side, he really wanted to shout out to express his feelings. This was what a true master was like-- never abandoning the people beside them in times of trouble.

Zhang Xiao'bao remained silent. He knew what Wang Juan meant and did not say anything to expose or contradict her. He waited for Hu'zi's mood to calm down before speaking,

"Hu'zi, make me something. This object is two inches long and is half the thickness of a chopstick. It's flat and there has to be three serrations on it."

While talking, Zhang Xiao'bao picked up a small wooden stick and drew the shape out for Hu'zi to see.

Hu'zi looked at it carefully and nodded, "Young Master, don't worry, I will find someone to do good job on making it."

"Okay, then you can go do that now. Juan'juan and I don't need to be taken care of right now." Zhang Xiao'bao pulled Wang Juan to walk away after saying that.

"What did you ask him to make? Why does it look like a weapon to me?" Wang Juan asked Zhang Xiao'bao after walking far away.

"It's a weapon for both us to use. We can make a covering for it and keep it in the sleeve of our clothes. In case of danger, such as someone holding us hostage, we can't just wait for others to rescue us. That thing has strong penetrating strength. If someone holds us in their arms to threaten others, we can let that person know that not just anyone can held hostage."

Zhang Xiao'bao was now preparing for the dangers that might arise in the future.

"Okay, I see. When this item is made, the two of us can practice assassinating. Your level of cruelty is not average. You requested that it have three serrations; if it was aimed at the neck, with just one strike, there will be no way to save the person anymore."

Wang Juan had never fully understood Zhang Xiao'bao. Thinking of the two-inch-long flat needle with three serrations being stabbed into a person's neck, she had to admit that Zhang Xiao'bao couldn't wear away his tyrannical character.

"Don't think that I am cruel. People who can reall use children as hostages will not have a better heart than me. You're the one who can't make a gun."

"Do you think guns are that easy to make? This is the Tang Dynasty, not the Song Dynasty where the handicraft industry was flourishing. I can think of ways to make all kinds of gunpowder and replicate the outer appearance of a gun, but do you dare to use it?" Wang Juan made a gun hand gesture with her index finger and thumb and pressed it against Zhang Xiao'bao's nose.

Zhang Xiaobao's two black eyes moved closer to the lower center and his lips moved slightly, "I don't dare, I'm afraid of being blasted. Didn't you say that Zhou Xihu's uncle is coming over today, why hasn't he arrived yet? Don't pinch my nose."

Wang Juan reluctantly withdrew her hand away. "You were pinched so hard that you have gone silly. He did say he was going to arrive today, but he meant he was going to arrive at the San'shui county, not at our place. There are still other people from the Imperial Court, so we still need to make arrangements first. Tell me, what's the best medium for sound propagation?"

"In theory, the higher the density, the faster the propagation. The smaller the dissipation, the more stable the propagation will be. What are you planning to do?" Zhang Xiao'bao shook his head and returned his black eyes to their original position.

"Oh, do you know how to make a phone? I want to prepare alarm equipment for the farmers in the Manor. I want them to be able to send news as soon as there is a danger and get people to come over to help."

Wang Juan blinked her big eyes while she spoke.

"I'm not a scientist. If you want to deceive people, I have an infinite number of methods. As for practical applications, people from the science academy are tens of thousands of times better than me. I am not an expert nor a professor."

"It's fine if you say you can't do it. I never believed in experts or professors. I know a few intellectuals at the science academy and all of them are so stupid. I don't know how they got to be so famous; all they think of was just research. Forget it, lets use the old method."

Wang Juan was a little disappointed in Zhang Xiao'bao's answer, so she sighed and made up her mind.

In the afternoon of that day, Wang Juan arranged for everyone's houses to have two strings woven from silk coming out from the house. The strings were pulled diagonally upwards to a tower built of wood. These towers were then connected to other towers using more silk ropes. All of these towers were then connected to the Master house.

For the strings at the farmer's house, pulling on one of the string will cause a corresponding bell on the tower to ring, and the other one has a tube made from bamboo and was also connected to the tower.

"Okay, it's done. This is the most primitive remote communication method. Tomorrow we will find two doctors, and a firefighting team will also be formed on the manor. They will go to wherever there is a problem."

In the evening, Wang Juan finally came to a stop and she spoke to Zhang Xiao'bao while clapping her hands.

Zhang Xiao'bao already had an idea of what Wang Juan wanted to make. She wanted to set up an alarm system, bu the method was too primitive. He wanted to point out some of the weak points, but seeing that Wang Juan's was so excited, he couldn't bear to speak so he nodded his head, "Nice, it's not bad."

"Your words are insincere. I know what you're thinking of; you're thinking that when the wind blows, the string will move and the bell it's connected to will ring? Unless it is very strong wind, this kind of thing will not happen. Quite a bit of strength is needed to pull the bell into the slot.

If the wind can actually blow the bell into the slot, then even more the reason for us to make preparations since it's possible that some people's houses will be blown down. The farmers are so good and they even dared to eat that tofu, so it's a given that we have to do some things for them. "

Wang Juan knew what he was thinking as soon as she looked at Zhang Xiao'bao's expression.

"Okay, I agree, but the accuracy may not be that high." Zhang Xiao'bao spent only five taels of silver on this matter and didn't care anymore.

"Hurry up and find a doctor. Now we only have a veterinarian and a doctor, we need doctors to take night shifts. Let's go to sleep, and don't always push against me at night." Wang Juan pretended to speak generously, and then turned around and left.

Zhang Xiao'bao was stunned for a moment, and then went back, "At night, you're the one that pushes against me. Not only pushing, you also hug. I almost fell onto the ground. Let's sleep on the carpet when the weather gets warmer."

"Who hugged you? I think of you as a pillow, squishy and cool to the touch. Ever since I was child, I always needed to hold onto something in order to sleep. I let you take a huge advantage and yet you still complain. Back then, I used to hug a cloth stuffie." Wang Juan didn't express a single hint of embarrassment or awkwardness.

Zhang Xiao'bao sighed. He knew that reason couldn't be used in this conversation like this so he could only try to keep his ground and protest a little.

"Then, Comrade Wang Juan, I hope you can take good care of this cloth stuffie, don't always pull at the neck, my head fell off my pillow several times already."

"I see, I will give myself psychological hints when I sleep at night and tell myself that I'm not holding a stuffie, but a living body, a little baby." Wang Juan walked ahead and spoke without turning her head.

Zhang Xiao'bao scratched his head, "I'm a baby? You seem to be younger than me."

"'Little baby' is the name of my dog, he's very obedient."

"Is anyone there? My mother fell off the heated bed and she's now lying on the ground. She's unable to move. Help me."

Neither Zhang Xiao'bao nor Wang Juan thought that something would happen on the first night of the alarm system being installed. Resident Zhang Xiao'shu's house used this system to call for help.

The resident on the tower first heard of the bell ringing and then saw the bell fall into the slot. So the resident picked up the connected bamboo tube and heard Zhang Xiao'shu's call for help.

Zhang Xiao'shu's shout was loud. Not only did the person on the tower hear it, but the neighbors on both sides also heard it so they both came to check.

The people on the tower didn't dare to neglect the situation, and passed the news to the master's house. Without saying a word, the people at the master's house called the doctor whom the manor had invited and told him that someone had fallen. By the time the doctor finished making preparations while in a daze, the resident had already prepared a carriage to quickly send the doctor to Zhang Xiao'shu's house.

It took less than 15 minutes, or according to Zhang Xiaobao and Wang Juan, it was nine and a half minutes, the doctor appeared at Zhang Xiao'shu's home. Zhang Xiao'shu and the neighbors thought they would have to wait for a while, so they didn't expect the people would arrive so soon.

The doctor took her pulse and checked the old lady's injury. While treating the injury, he said to Zhang Xiao'shu, "She's fine. She broke her leg when she fell. Don't lie on the heated bed when the weather is hot. Let me align her bone back into place and then I'll prescribe two different medicines. Drink it for half a month and she will be fine. You can come with me to get the medicine, or you can find someone to get it. It costs three coins."

"Three coins?" Zhang Xiao'shu was stunned.

"If you don't have money, it's okay to give items in exchange. Find me a plank and I will tie it up to her leg." The healer said with restraint.

Zhang Xiao'shu didn't have to go for one as the neighbor who came here found a plank already.

"Why is so little money required?" Zhang Xiao'shu was still in the state of worrying about his mother's condition.

The neighbor next to him was clear mindedand said to Zhang Xiao'shu, "Xiao'shu, you have forgotten, the majority of the cost is covered by the Master. Why were you so careless and letauntie fall. When she's getting off the bed, help her down."

"I was asleep, who knew my mother would get up at night? For the next few days, we will sleep on the ground. That's right, the master has already said that if anyone got sick, the master will pay for majority of the cost. Encountering a master like this is a blessing that my mother and I have cultivated for eight life times for."

Zhang Xiao'shu understood that he would resting for half a month and taking medicine everyday could not come close to costing just three cents. The rest of the money was covered by the master. And this was just for normal residents, if it was a person from the inner courtyard, not even a single coin needed to be paid.

Xiaoshu's mother also woke up just in time to hear these words. She stretched out her hand to hold her son's leg, "Xiao'shu, do more things for the master in the future. I have lived for so many years already and this is my first time seeing a master like this. I remember the time when I first woke up, it hasn't even been 15 minutes yet, right? You mustn't forget the kindness of the master's house."

Zhang Xiao'shu saw his mother wake up and nodded when he heard her words. Then he remembered that he tried to pull the two ropes and the doctor came so fast. No one from outside the manor would believe this. The master's abilities were incomparable to anyone. It could very well be that even the palace was not as advanced.

The night hurried, and the morning sun was heavy.

The early risers were getting ready to work. Hearing what happened yesterday, Zhang Xiao'shu's neighbor kept telling others what he saw, which surprised and emotionally moved the residents.

Zhang Xiao'shu got up early in the morning too and after caring for his mother, and knelt outside of the Master house.