Transmigrated into the role of the matriarch, I ensured my family had enough to eat and wear during

The village head knew that Tang Susu must have something special to teach such a clever child as Yang Gousheng.

Moreover, the Tang family was the only family within a hundred miles that had produced a student who had passed the imperial examinations, so their knowledge and experience were certainly broader than that of the experienced farmers in the village.

So when faced with the critical problem of the starting point for digging the canal, he didn't hesitate and directly passed the question to Tang Susu.

After pondering for a moment, Tang Susu pointed towards the valley floor and offered a solution: "The water source is underground. I suggest digging a ditch directly at the bottom of the valley. Follow the terrain of the valley floor to slowly circle around to the east, and then divert it down the mountain."

She explained, "The valley floor is sheltered from the sun year-round, so the soil is relatively soft, unlike the rock-hard soil in other places. This greatly reduces the difficulty of digging and saves everyone some effort."

After discussing all the details of the water diversion project, it was already noon. The sun was so hot that everyone was burning up, so they packed up their things and prepared to walk down the mountain.

Along the way, Tang Susu thought of Yang Xiaobao's longing for the hen to lay more chicks, and also worried that her two chicks, Da Hua and Er Hua, looked no different from domestic chickens, which might arouse suspicion from outsiders and could potentially cause trouble.

She decided to openly and legitimately bring back a rooster to make the source of her poultry more reasonable.

Tang Susu immediately accessed the trading platform and spent seventy-eight coins to buy a beautiful rooster of good quality, specifically for breeding.

She quietly stepped back a few paces and released the rooster. The rooster crowed and flapped its wings, taking flight and heading straight for Yang Gousheng, who was deep in thought about the details of digging the ditch.

Yang Gousheng was startled and instinctively tried to dodge.

Yang Zhimao, his eyes gleaming, reacted faster than anyone else, rushing forward to hug the rooster tightly, shouting excitedly, "Wow! It's a big rooster! So fat, we'll have meat to eat!"

I was so happy I almost jumped for joy.

Yang Gousheng was filled with frustration, regretting that he was a step too slow and failed to catch the four or five-pound fat rooster.

He stared at the rooster in Yang Zhimao's arms, his mind filled with images of stewing chicken soup and stir-frying chicken, and his mouth was practically watering.

Seeing this, Tang Susu secretly admired Yang Zhimao's quick wit and sharp mind.

She immediately spent 78 coins on the trading platform to get an equally plump rooster, and made it pounce towards Tang Lifu.

Tang Lifu was quick-witted; seeing the rooster pounce, he reached out to grab it.

Yang Gousheng panicked, fearing that someone else would snatch it away again, and immediately rushed forward with Tang Liqiang.

Yang Xiaobao was also worried that the chicken would run away, so he tiptoed after it.

The four brothers worked together to pounce on the rooster and finally pinned it to the ground. The rooster clucked in pain repeatedly.

Tang Susu quickly stepped forward to pull the children away, afraid that they might hurt the rooster and kill it, which would mean spending more money to buy another one.

Fortunately, the rooster was only startled and was still flapping and struggling, but it was not seriously injured.

Tang Lifu casually plucked a few tough grasses, twisted them into a rope, tied it to the rooster's leg, and tossed it into his backpack.

The village headman looked at the two roosters that looked almost identical and was very surprised. He clicked his tongue and said, "In this year of famine, wild chickens are actually stronger than domestic chickens. Maybe there is some good grain hidden in these deep mountains. I should take some time to go and check it out someday."

Tang Susu thought to herself: This is a "rich chicken" raised on modern feed, so it's naturally beautiful and plump. I advise you not to overthink it. There's no good feed in the deep mountains.

The group carried two large, fat chickens back to the village. In these famine years, being able to obtain such good things instantly caused a sensation in Yangqu Village.

The villagers gathered around, curiously examining the two roosters and asking all at once where they had gotten them.

The village head, unable to contain his excitement, exclaimed, "There are truly many good things in the mountains!"

He then turned to the villagers around him and instructed, "Quickly spread the word that all the villagers of Yangqu Village should gather under the big banyan tree for a meeting. I have some incredibly good news to announce!"

The villagers cheered and spread the news to each other.

Everyone speculated that the good news must be related to "water." Someone said, "Maybe the village head has reached an agreement with Ma'an Village, and they've agreed to lend us water!"

Some people worried: "If Ma'an Village borrows water, they will definitely ask us to exchange it for grain, and it might even take most of it. But our village is already short of grain, and we rely entirely on the harvest from the fields. If this drought continues, we will run out of food. But right now, the water shortage is even more urgent. Without water to drink, we won't be able to save our lives."

Yangqu Village has a total of 201 households, including large families that have not separated and small families of five or six people, with a total population of nearly 2,000.

Before long, everyone had gathered under the banyan tree, crowding the open space in front of it. The afternoon sun grew increasingly scorching, making people's scalps tingle.

Some villagers carried their young children on their backs, while others let their older children ride on their shoulders, crowding around the village headman, eagerly awaiting his announcement.

Having not drunk water for most of the day, everyone was parched and eager to hear the news so they could go to the neighboring village to fetch water.

The village head parted the crowd and strode to the boulder they had seen earlier.

He suddenly waved his hand, and the noisy scene instantly quieted down, even the children's crying stopped.

The village headman got straight to the point, announcing the exciting news: "Folks, I have great news to share! This morning, Gou Sheng's mother took me to the mountains and we found an underground water source!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a burst of joyful sobs erupted from the audience.

The villagers' pent-up fear and despair, suppressed for many days, were released in an instant. But they also forcibly suppressed their excitement, held their breath, and waited for the village head to continue speaking.

The village head then added, "A few days ago, Gou Sheng's mother discovered lotus roots in the mountains and immediately came to tell me; last night, upon learning that there was a water source deep in the mountains, she told me again overnight."

He abruptly changed the subject, his expression turning serious: "I know that everyone may have a lot of opinions about Gousheng's mother on a regular basis. But from this moment on, Gousheng's mother is the savior of everyone in Yangqu Village!"

Tang Susu, squeezed in the crowd, was quite surprised, not expecting the village head to clear her name first.

The original owner had a terrible reputation in Yangqu Village. She not only had a major falling out with the Yang family, but also had many conflicts with her neighbors. Everyone in the village despised her.

After Tang Susu transmigrated, although she improved her relationship with her family and helped the villagers find Lian Gen, those who didn't understand her still gossiped about her behind her back.

However, she never cared about these rumors, but she never expected the village head to be so serious in clearing her name.

The village headman surveyed the entire area with a stern gaze and said in a deep voice, "Gousheng's mother had no obligation to report these discoveries to me. She could have easily used these resources quietly on her own. But she didn't. Instead, she genuinely hoped that everyone in Yangqu Village could live well! If anyone thinks Gousheng's mother doesn't deserve our gratitude, or that she doesn't deserve to be our savior, then they can pack their things and move out of Yangqu Village right now!"

Li Zheng was the undisputed leader in the village and held immense prestige.

No one dared to object to his words.

The villagers turned around and surrounded Tang Susu, thanking her with gratitude on their faces.

Someone sincerely said, "Aunt Yang, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, our whole family would have died of thirst!"

Someone blushed and apologized, "Aunt Yang, I was confused before and misunderstood you. I even talked badly about you behind your back. Please don't hold it against me."

Someone else pleaded, "Aunt Yang, you're so magnanimous, please don't hold our previous nonsense against us."

Tang Susu smiled and waved her hand, saying gently, "You're too kind, everyone. I just did it on the spur of the moment, it's nothing."

She secretly admitted to herself that she was not entirely selfless: Lian Gen's family could not dig up all of it or eat it all, so instead of letting it rot in the ground, she might as well share it with the villagers and gain a good reputation.

As for that groundwater, it was impossible for her family to bring it down the mountain on their own; they would have to rely on all the able-bodied men in the village. Ultimately, it was a win-win situation.

After the villagers calmed down a bit, the village head spoke again, his voice even more inspiring: "Don't worry, everyone! Just dig a few times at that deep mountain spring, and plenty of water will gush out—sweet mountain spring water! Our village will never lack water again, and we won't have to exchange our precious grain for water with Xihe Village and Ma'an Village! Yangqu Village is blessed by heaven and earth; heaven won't abandon us!"

The villagers were completely excited, and their cheers echoed throughout the village for a long time.

As the cheers subsided, the village headman changed the subject, raising his voice, and said, "However, it's not enough for us to just have water to drink; we also need to make sure the rice in the fields has enough water!"

The villagers, who were immersed in joy, were suddenly stunned and asked in confusion, "How are you going to water the rice? There are thousands of acres of land, and we can't possibly irrigate them all by carrying water."

The village headman came down from the boulder, gave the platform to Yang Gousheng, and said to everyone, "Gousheng has already thought of a method for diverting water to irrigate the fields. Let him tell you about it."

Yang Gousheng specially went home to change into a clean set of patched clothes. This was the first time he had spoken in front of nearly two thousand people, and he felt both nervous and excited.

He took a deep breath, strode up the boulder, quickly calmed himself, and began to explain clearly: "Fellow villagers, the water source in that deep mountain has a very abundant reserve, enough to irrigate all the rice paddies in our village. The most crucial thing now is to bring the water down from the mountain to the fields below. I've already calculated it; the distance from the water source to the foot of the mountain is about two thousand zhang (approximately 600 meters). If we gather all five hundred or so strong laborers in the village and work together to dig the ditches, we can complete them in two or three days, allowing the water to flow smoothly into the fields!"