Chapter 77: Mrs. San Makes a Contribution
Once San Shier had reveled in his triumph, he got down to serious business.
There was still much to be done in the village; one might say everything was awaiting revitalization.
Li Daoxuan reached out and moved aside the Lego Prison that surrounded the "labor reform prisoners." Inside, over a hundred prisoners emerged timidly.
They didn't yet fully grasp that Gao Family Village was protected by a deity. They couldn't fathom how the colossal wall had suddenly materialized around them, or how an opening had automatically appeared to let them out.
In short, a state of profound trepidation and deference was their only logical reaction.
San Shier stood before them and declared loudly, "You labor reform prisoners, listen up! Starting today, you will atone for your crimes through labor..."
The prisoners thought to themselves, "So, it's work, then? After fighting all night and getting no sleep, our stomachs are aching with hunger. And now we have to work. It looks like we're in for a terrible day of torment."
Just as these thoughts crossed their minds, they heard San Shier announce loudly, "Your first task is to cook for yourselves. We people of Gao Family Village don't have time to serve you meals, so you'll have to cook your own food."
Upon hearing this, the group of prisoners looked utterly bewildered.
This didn't sound like labor reform; it sounded more like a reward.
Good heavens! In this great drought, if you could just let me eat my fill, I'd call you my own father! And you call *this* 'atoning for sins through labor reform'?
Soon after, the villagers of Gao Family Village lent them pots, pans, bowls, and plates. These individuals went to the hillside themselves, cut down dead trees for firewood, fetched water from the large pond, set up their pots, and began boiling water.
San Shier's servant pushed over a grain of white rice as large as a millstone. This single grain weighed over a hundred jin. He tossed the rice before the group. "This is your food. Divide it yourselves."
The prisoners stared at the single grain of rice and were utterly flabbergasted.
"W-what... what is this... thing?"
"Is it... rice?"
"E-e-e-e-e-enormous rice."
"Why is it so incredibly huge?"
The servant chuckled, half-scolding, "You ignorant yokels! This is Divine Rice, a gift from the Heavenly Lord! One grain is enough to feed a hundred of you! Now hurry up and give thanks to the Heavenly Lord!"
The prisoners didn't know who the Heavenly Lord was, but they didn't care. If he gave them food, they'd thank him.
The group, chattering excitedly, gave their thanks, took the borrowed chisels and hammers, chiseled open the enormous rice grain and broke it into smaller pieces. They put a few pieces into each pot, cooked it into a thin gruel, and then each person downed two large bowls.
Full and satisfied, they instantly felt refreshed and invigorated.
When they were with Zheng Yanfu and Zhong Guangdao, they never ate their fill. Although they had stolen official grain, they dared not eat to their heart's content, because they had to be prepared to hide in the mountains from imperial soldiers for a long time, so that official grain had to be rationed carefully.
Every meal, they could only eat less than half their fill.
This was truly a long-awaited feast.
With full stomachs, their strength returned.
Some couldn't help but entertain thoughts of escape. "Now that we have strength," they thought, "if we run as fast as we can, maybe we can get away."
But they patted their recently filled bellies and hesitated.
"Where would we find enough to eat after escaping?"
"Never mind. It's better to just submit to labor reform."
After tidying away the cooking utensils, the labor reform prisoners went up the hillside to chop down trees and fell timber. Their task was to make doors and windows for all the rooms in the Hakka Walled House. This was no small task. There were over two hundred rooms. Just the door panels alone would be over two hundred pieces, and even more windows. It would keep them busy for quite a while.
As for the villagers of Gao Family Village, with a group of "free" labor reform prisoners helping them make doors and windows for their homes, they saved a considerable amount of time. The women continued to diligently weave cotton cloth, while the men continued making armor plates, crafting pottery, or carving sculptures...
Having experienced two consecutive bandit attacks on Gao Family Village, they now realized that idleness was not an option. To protect themselves effectively, quickly making a set of armor for every man in the village was their top priority.
Both inside and outside the village, a bustling, energetic scene unfolded.
------
At high noon, the sun beat down mercilessly.
Li Daoxuan carried a bowl of pickled vegetable and shredded pork rice noodles and sat down by the diorama box.
Now, not only was the village bustling, but the northern hillside was also alive with activity. The labor reform prisoners, spread across the slope, were chopping down trees and felling timber for doors and windows. The whole area vibrated with a fervent, industrious atmosphere.
Li Daoxuan kept tapping the "north, south, east, west" buttons on the outside of the box, adjusting his field of view, watching the busy scenes of the tiny figures, so that the external camera could record more interesting footage.
After tapping north several times, he suddenly felt something was amiss.
Huh?
This large rock at the edge of his vision... he hadn't seen it just moments ago, and now it had suddenly appeared.
After a split second of stunned silence, he suddenly realized, "The field of view had expanded again!"
First, he checked the value displayed on the outside of the box. It still showed 330, unchanged. Then he pulled out the hillside video he had recorded a few tens of minutes earlier to compare.
The box's field of view had expanded outwards by about 10 meters. Ten meters wasn't much, barely noticeable, but it was enough for him to spot an additional large rock.
He tapped the north, south, east, and west buttons again. Sure enough, the field of view had expanded by 10 meters in every direction.
The 10-meter expansion was likely too small, which meant only a small decimal had been added after "330." The box had rounded it off, so it wasn't displayed.
When did it expand?
He didn't know!
But why it expanded was not hard to guess.
Li Daoxuan thought to himself, "It seems that in those last few tens of minutes, Mrs. San made progress in Chengcheng County."
-------
Meanwhile, in Chengcheng County, at the City God Temple, in a side hall.
Mrs. San was dressed in a dark blue Daoist robe, her hair styled into a Daoist bun. Combined with her slightly plump face, as she sat cross-legged on a prayer mat, she truly resembled a benevolent lay practitioner.
Her personal maid, holding a medicine pot in her hands, stood a step behind her, much like her attendant deity.
A man dressed in ragged, patched clothes was kneeling before Mrs. San, kowtowing frantically. "Thank you, Heavenly Lord! Thank you, Heavenly Lord! After my son took the divine medicine granted by the Heavenly Lord, his high fever quickly subsided! His little life has finally been saved! Thank you, Heavenly Lord!"
Mrs. San wore a benevolent smile. "It's good that he was saved. The Heavenly Lord, if he knew, would surely be overjoyed. Do you know how you ought to conduct yourself from now on?"
The man bowed his head sharply, touching it to the ground. "This humble one would never forget the Heavenly Lord's teachings. From now on, I will surely dedicate myself to good deeds and help others to the best of my ability."
"Very good. You may go!" Mrs. San waved her hand.
The man left, profusely expressing his gratitude. As he reached the entrance of the City God Temple, he happened upon an old woman clutching a small girl and wailing loudly at the temple gate.
The man asked curiously, "Madam, why are you weeping?"
The old woman sobbed, "My granddaughter has had diarrhea for several days, with no improvement. I watch her grow thinner by the day. My family is poor; we can't afford a doctor or medicine. I can't save my granddaughter, so I can only come to the City God Temple to beg the immortals to save her life."
The man assumed a serious expression. "Madam, perhaps you haven't heard? In this side hall of the City God Temple, there is a devout practitioner who, acting under the divine decree of Dao Xuan Tian Zun, alleviates suffering in the world, taking not a single copper coin. For poor people like you, who can't afford a doctor, you should go to the side hall and find that practitioner, and ask for the divine medicine bestowed by Dao Xuan Tian Zun to save her. Perhaps your granddaughter still has a glimmer of hope."
The old woman was overjoyed. "Which side hall is the practitioner in? My eyes aren't very good; I'm afraid I won't find her."
The man replied, "Very well then. I have already sworn to dedicate myself to good deeds and to see a good deed through to the end. I shall take you there..."
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