The male supporting character was actually myself.

Sure enough, the new magistrate soon issued a proclamation, ordering all residents of the county not to go out at night and not to be afraid of any noise they heard.

"Although it wasn't explicitly stated, the meaning is similar to the rumors!"

"So they really want to ask the Dragon King to control the floods? Not letting us go out, I'm afraid we've offended the gods!"

"The commotion will definitely be huge. If the Dragon King himself comes, won't he bring his shrimp soldiers and crab generals? It'll be a grand and spectacular event!"

"I wouldn't dare go to watch even if it was lively; someone could die if I caused an accident!"

……

The rumors, spread secretly, reached every corner of Lugu County before nightfall.

There's no need to worry about the other villages, since there aren't many people there anyway.

If anyone dares to come and watch in the middle of the night, the yamen runners and servants blocking the perimeter will be able to handle it.

As night fell, the Taoist priest looked at Jiang Chen, who had changed into a short-sleeved shirt, and said in a low voice, "Magistrate, although this action is for the benefit of the people, your use of magic is too ostentatious. Be careful of being struck by lightning!"

Would you like to reconsider?

"The Xue family has plenty of money anyway, wouldn't it be safer to hire manpower to solve this?"

"There's no time to wait; spring planting is almost over. If we wait for manual dredging of the river, the problem might not be solved until autumn."

Jiang Chen fastened his belt and said in a deep voice, "Once the water conservancy project is solved, I will also tidy up the farmland, and we can have a good harvest in the fall."

In less than two years, Lugu County will become prosperous.

The Taoist priest sighed deeply, "Aren't you afraid of the lightning tribulation?"

Are you scared?

"Yeah, I'm afraid that when lightning strikes you, it might strike me too."

"Haven't you ever been beaten for talking like that?"

Taoist priest:?_?...

In ancient times, the nights in the moonless wilderness were pitch black and very quiet.

Apart from the distant sound of rushing water and the occasional chirping of wild insects, the riverbank was completely quiet.

Having been flooded many times, no trees have grown on the riverbank; only wild grasses grow luxuriantly.

"Host, we've confirmed there's no one nearby. We can release the amphibious excavator now!" The little white cat cautiously surveyed the area before jumping back onto its host's shoulder to remind him.

With a thought, Jiang Chen summoned the giant amphibious excavator that he had just unlocked through the tech tree two days ago, which emerged from the system space and landed steadily on the silt.

Get in the car, turn the key to start, and the excavator roars to life, its headlights illuminating the riverbed!

"As expected of a great immortal, the power of his magic is terrifying!" Even the Taoist priests meditating on the periphery, though mentally prepared, were startled by the commotion.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Building Infrastructure in Lugu County

The yamen runners and servants were clearly a little panicked.

But remember what the magistrate said: the Taoist priest's magic to invite the Dragon King to dredge the water conservancy project was actually a blessing for the people, and he himself, as a guard, also had merit. Thinking this way, he was no longer afraid.

They were all fully focused, standing straight and tall, eager to perform well.

The deafening roar didn't stop until dawn.

After the yamen runners and other guards dispersed, the villagers, who had been listening to the commotion all night, finally climbed onto the riverbank.

"My goodness! No wonder the Dragon King has come in person!"

"Such a large area of ​​silt is completely gone!"

"My goodness, that's amazing!"

"The Taoist priest truly possesses the ability to move mountains and unload ridges. How long would it take for humans to dredge such a large river channel!"

"I'm afraid that in just a few more days, the river here will return to normal!"

"All that stinking silt has been piled up in the wasteland."

"The land that has been piled with silt will be fertile next year!"

……

While the crowd of people dressed in tattered clothes gathered around and discussed the scene, Jiang Chen, who hadn't slept all night, was catching up on sleep in bed, with the little white cat curled up beside him, also sleeping soundly.

"Thank you for your hard work, Daoist!"

"Thank you for your hard work, Daoist Master!"

……

Along the way, almost everyone treated the Taoist priest with respect and piety, and expressed their heartfelt gratitude.

Even with his thick skin, he couldn't help but blush and quickly hid in his room, not daring to come out again. "Alas, the immortal is doing good deeds. It seems that even the heavens are reluctant to punish him."

Lugu County is in luck this time!

For several days in a row, the newly appointed county magistrate neither urged the payment of taxes nor repaired the county government office. Apart from occasionally settling neighborhood disputes, he spent the rest of his time asking a Taoist priest to help dredge the river.

After the riverbed was restored, the Taoist priest performed a ritual to turn over all the barren farmland, and the silt that had been cleared was evenly turned into the fields as fertilizer.

As spring draws to a close, Lugu County is undergoing a complete transformation.

A "Lugu County Planning Map" was posted at the main gate of the county government office. Small villages with almost no population had been demolished, and the populations had been merged into other villages. The fields had been connected to form a large farm that stretched as far as the eye could see.

The crops planted were also unlike anything they had ever seen before.

It is said that the county magistrate found new varieties from overseas, and the names are also strange, such as sweet potato, corn, potato, peanut and many other strangely named vegetable crops, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage and all kinds of other varieties. Even the soybean and wheat seeds that are usually planted have been replaced with new varieties.

The county magistrate said that these were the seeds he had carefully cultivated, resulting in fuller grains and a better harvest.

Lotus roots were planted in the pond, and fish were raised there;

The hillside is covered with fruit trees;

A plot of land has been specially designated for the construction of vegetable greenhouses in preparation for the continued growth of fresh vegetables during the winter.

Construction began simultaneously in Lugu County. The county magistrate personally funded the hiring of many laborers from other places to build houses and roads using a magical clay called "cement" refined by a Taoist priest. Many factories were even built outside the county town.

Before long, many people moved into the factory with their families and began to manufacture a strange, fragrant, white thing.

Every time they were manufactured, many merchants would travel thousands of miles to transport them away. It is said that those workers made a lot of money!

More and more handicraft factories opened up, and the county magistrate personally trained the workers, teaching them how to fire glass and make mirrors.

They manufacture perfumes and new types of rouge and face powder, and I heard from the merchants that the young ladies of the capital are scrambling to buy them.

They even opened a school to provide free education and literacy for the children...

As summer was drawing to a close, Jiang Chen and the Taoist priest rode tall horses from the county town all the way to the farmland.

"In just a few months, things have changed so fast!" The Taoist priest shielded his eyes with his hand as he gazed at the vast fields of crops that were about to be harvested, and said with a wry smile, "You have done so many good things for the people, but you always use me as a cover."

The people are practically worshipping me!

Although you did the work and the merit will accumulate on you, I've still benefited from your good deeds and accumulated a lot of good karma. I have neither contributed nor worked hard, so I feel unworthy of this praise!

Jiang Chen was a bit darker and thinner than before. Looking at the harvested vegetables being transported away on the cement road, he was overjoyed and said, "How could I feel ashamed to accept this?"

If it weren't for you, Taoist priest, acting as a cover, I wouldn't have been able to go all out and do something big.

You deserve half the credit for the dramatic transformation of Lugu County.

The little white cat perched on its host's shoulder, idly playing with its big tail, and muttered, "Host is relying on the technology tree to build infrastructure. I guess the environment has changed so much and the progress is so fast that he doesn't even know how to write the script."

So the plot hasn't been updated yet.

I was wondering, what if we just live out our lives peacefully in this world, and the script never gets updated?

"If things can continue like this, it will be a good thing for everyone!" Jiang Chen said with a double meaning.

The Taoist priest and the white cat both nodded in agreement.

Autumn, the harvest season, has arrived in the blink of an eye.

In ancient times, transportation and communication were very inconvenient. Lugu County was located in a remote area and was known for its poverty. Few traveling merchants passed through it, so news spread very slowly.

The way people in Lugu County eat, live, and travel is almost ahead of its time; apart from people from neighboring counties who occasionally marvel at it, very few people know about it.

Jiang Chen was so engrossed in using the tech tree to unlock more inventory and build infrastructure that he neglected to promote his products and amass wealth.

Almost everyone who remained in Lugu County has started working again. Occasionally, there are refugees returning home. Depending on the new household registration policy, they receive different treatment depending on their circumstances, but as long as they are capable and hardworking, they can quickly earn a lot of money and settle down.

These days, the main source of income is soap and various cosmetics, and Zhang Qingzhu has become a leader among the female workers.

Her two children are sent to school early in the morning and picked up after work in the afternoon, so that the children's studies are not delayed and she is not delayed in her work.

Soap making is highly profitable, so Jiang Chen is willing to pay his workers high wages.

Zhang Qingzhu, a woman, now earns at least two taels of silver a month, including her job and bonuses. The family of three moved to Lugu County, where the magistrate allocated them a house and land for free, and their lives became increasingly prosperous.

Once a person has something to strive for, their energy and spirit will be full.

The entire Lugu County has swept away its previous gloomy and half-dead state and is now showing signs of prosperity everywhere.

The people were full, their faces regained color, and they smiled.

The clothes people wore gradually improved from tattered rags to fine cloth garments, and occasionally, some clever and shrewd families could even afford to dress their wives and children in silk and satin.

There was less meat on the table, but a variety of dishes were plentiful.

Compared to the extravagant hope of having enough to eat and wear in previous years, things have improved a lot!

According to the county magistrate, the mountains under the jurisdiction of Lugu County have been contracted out to hunters, who raise various kinds of chickens, ducks, pigs, and sheep, and the animals are all of good quality. By the end of the year, there will probably be a large amount of meat on the market.

Everyone put in their best effort and worked hard alongside the county magistrate, striving to achieve the ideal life he had described to them as soon as possible.

By then, every family will have meat on their table;

Every household can live in a spacious house that is warm in winter and cool in summer;

The elderly are cared for and the young are supported;

Children's ability to read and write can be used to create better conditions, forming a virtuous cycle.

Those days must have been like being in a fairyland!