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

Tang Susu sat on the swaying oxcart, silently making plans in her mind.

Now the whole family is involved in making jelly, so it would be reasonable to pay everyone for their work.

The wages cannot be too low, otherwise it will make me seem stingy and break my family's hearts.

But you can't give them too much, lest the children have spare money and start asking around town, discovering something unusual about the family's food source, which would only cause more trouble.

The oxcart slowly arrived at the village entrance. Yang Defu greeted them and then carried his machete into the mountains to collect firewood.

Tang Susu led her four sons, each carrying an empty bucket, home.

Along the way, we saw several villagers thatching their roofs to make repairs, presumably to prevent leaks when it rained.

Tang Susu glanced in her direction and casually said, "Our roof is also terribly dilapidated. Luckily it hasn't rained these past few days, otherwise the house would definitely be flooded. Once we earn some more money, we'll build a new house."

Upon hearing this, Tang Lifu immediately nodded in agreement: "Great! Starting tomorrow, I'll make time to collect adobe bricks, pour mud into molds, mix in some straw, let them solidify, and then dry them in the sun. Once we've collected enough, we'll start building the house!"

Yang Gousheng chimed in, "I'll help my eldest uncle too! Liqiang isn't young anymore, he'll need a house to get married in the future, we can't let my second uncle repeat my mistakes."

Tang Susu knew that most of the houses in Yangqu Village were made of adobe bricks. These houses were inexpensive, and her family had plenty of manpower. She could save up some adobe bricks every day and finish building the new house before winter.

She actually preferred to build a brick house, which would be more sturdy and durable, but the thought of having to spend more than a hundred taels of silver was just too conspicuous.

Even the village head's family lived in an adobe house. As a widow with a child, it was inevitable that she would be envied and jealous when she suddenly built a nice house. It was better to keep a low profile.

As the family was talking, they suddenly heard the clatter of hooves. A rather well-decorated carriage sped towards them from afar and stopped at the village entrance.

The village head of Yangqu Village, beaming with joy, jumped down from the carriage and repeatedly bowed to the driver in thanks. The driver exchanged a few polite words and then drove away.

This was the first time the villagers of Yangqu Village had ever seen a real horse-drawn carriage. People working on the ridges of the fields put down their work and gathered around, asking questions with great curiosity.

The village head stroked his goatee and explained with a serious expression, "This is the carriage of the magistrate of Dongtai Town. The driver who just brought me back is the magistrate's personal coachman."

"My goodness, the village head is amazing! He actually managed to get the county magistrate's coachman to personally escort you back!"

"Absolutely! This is a tremendous honor!" the villagers exclaimed, their voices filled with envy.

The village head was overjoyed, his smile widening even further: "This is all because our Yangqu Village is united! The county magistrate learned about our village's ditch-digging and water-transporting project. Today, he specially sent someone to pick me up and bring me to town to inquire about the details of the water diversion. Before, seeing the county magistrate was as difficult as climbing to heaven, but today I'm actually able to sit and chat with him over tea—what an honor!"

The villagers grew increasingly envious and pressed him for details about the county magistrate's age, build, and temperament. The village head, eager to show off, patiently and earnestly answered each question.

Once the villagers' flattery had subsided, Tang Susu stepped forward and asked, "Lord Village Head, the County Magistrate summoned you specifically to inquire about the ditch. Surely it's not just to ask for details? Is there some special arrangement?"

The smug look on the village head's face faded slightly, and he looked at Tang Susu with some surprise.

He hadn't expected the woman to be so perceptive, immediately guessing the magistrate's true purpose in summoning him.

He nodded and told me the truth: "You guessed right. All 35 villages under the jurisdiction of Dongtai Town are short of water. The county magistrate wants to promote the method of digging ditches to bring water from Yangqu Village to all villages, and he specifically asked me if this method is feasible."

Someone in the crowd couldn't help but laugh, a hint of skepticism in their voice: "This method might work in our village, but it might not work in other villages. Our village has a water source in the gully-like mountains, but other villages might not. Take Ma'an Village, for example, it's so close to us, and we haven't found a water source yet, let alone those villages further away. I think the county magistrate is desperate and resorting to this as a last resort!"

As the village headman spoke, his gaze unconsciously drifted to Tang Susu, thinking that with the woman's intelligence, she might be able to come up with some good suggestions. Seeing this, Tang Susu turned to the four boys and said, "You all carry the buckets home first. I need to discuss something with the village headman."

The four boys obediently agreed and carried the buckets home first.

Tang Susu followed the village head to the big banyan tree in the village. Seeing this, the villagers dared not follow to watch the commotion.

Since the rice in the village started getting water, it has grown better and better. No one dares to underestimate Tang Susu anymore. Even the village head values ​​her so much. The villagers have more respect for her.

The sun was already setting in the west, the sky was dyed orange-red, and the air was still unbearably hot.

The banyan tree was lush and cast a large shade, but there was not a breath of wind. The two of them had only walked a few steps when they were covered in sweat and their clothes were soaked.

As soon as they reached the banyan tree, Tang Susu cut to the chase, her tone grave as she warned the village head: "Village Head, have you considered that while everywhere else is suffering from drought, only our Yangqu Village is able to successfully irrigate its fields and harvest crops? When other villages have no harvest and the villagers are starving, our Yangqu Village will become the 'early bird to stick its head out.' At that time, we will inevitably attract envy, jealousy, and hatred from others, and may even bring disaster upon ourselves."

The village head's expression changed slightly, clearly he hadn't considered this aspect.

Tang Susu continued, "However, it is indeed a good thing that the county magistrate is promoting the digging of ditches to divert water. In just over ten days, the rice will be heading, and the sooner we have water, the more grain we can harvest. However, this method is not suitable for all villages, and finding a water source is not an easy task."

The village head nodded, then asked curiously, "Speaking of which, how did you come up with the idea of ​​going to the mountains to find a water source and accurately find the water diversion route? By the way, the county magistrate has another request. He wants our Yangqu Village to send a few people to help other villages find water sources and plan the ditch digging routes. When the digging starts, he also wants to send some people to help."

Tang Susu changed the subject, saying, "Let's not talk about that for now. I've noticed that although the village seems peaceful lately, the patrol team members aren't as diligent and responsible as before."

The village head sighed and explained, "There's nothing we can do about it. After the rice was watered, there were more weeds and insects in the fields. The villagers all wanted a good harvest, so they worked day and night in the fields weeding, removing insects, and fertilizing. They simply didn't have much energy left to patrol the village, so I didn't have any strict requirements."

"That won't do." Tang Susu's expression grew increasingly serious, and she reminded them firmly, "Patrolling the village is not like other farm work where people can directly see the benefits. Once everyone feels that the village is peaceful and there are no threats, their vigilance will be relaxed, and they will no longer be willing to take the time to patrol the village."

"But it is precisely at times like these that we cannot let our guard down. No one can predict what accidents might happen, so the village patrol team cannot relax for even a day. They must treat patrols as a serious matter. Moreover, paying the patrol team members will ensure that they are truly committed."

She knew that security in ancient villages was already poor, and now, with a year of disaster, it was even more important to strengthen precautions in order to increase the sense of security for her own family and the village.

The village head looked troubled and sighed helplessly, "I also want to pay them wages, but the village has no money at all. The only income in the village is from selling wasteland and the land reclamation fees for accepting refugees. But in recent years, there haven't been many refugees settling in, and no one is willing to cultivate the wasteland. The little money we had saved up before was all spent on digging wells and supporting the elderly in the village. It's all gone."

Upon hearing this, Tang Susu smiled and slowly offered a suggestion: "Lord Village Head, promoting the irrigation system is a great opportunity for our village to earn money. Our Yangqu Village has solved such a big problem for the County Head, so he should allocate some money to reward our village. Why don't you first apply to the County Head for some funds? The money you get can be used to support the village patrol team."

The village head was stunned for a moment, then looked at Tang Susu with great admiration—how could he not have thought of this!

He had originally planned to have Yang Gousheng and his son help the county magistrate without pay, but after Tang Susu's suggestion, he instantly realized that rushing to help was worthless.

Only when the county magistrate is overwhelmed with the promotional work can their assistance truly demonstrate the value of Yangqu Village.