Chapter 22: Even If Starving to Death, Do Not Eat Seed Grain
Get a glimpse of "The Great Ming in the Box" Chapter 20: Admin Note: Chapters 20-21 are missing, check MTL: https://.net/mtl-reader/1206969/20/***âGao Yiye!âLi Daoxuan called out loudly.Gao Yiye... Continue the adventure now!
Admin Note: Chapters 20-21 are missing, check MTL: https://.net/mtl-reader/1206969/20/***
âGao Yiye!â
Li Daoxuan called out loudly.
Gao Yiye immediately respectfully raised her head and looked up at the sky.
When she raised her head, Li Daoxuan could clearly see her face.
Her features were delicate, her cheeks slightly flushedâtruly a beautiful woman.
Unfortunately, she was less than one centimeter tall, too beautiful toâŚ
Ahem!
He was thinking too far ahead!
Li Daoxuan opened his mouth and said, âSend Gao Chuwu to the county town for a trip, find Thirty-Two to help, and get a few skilled craftsmen to come to Gaojia Village.â
Gao Yiye quickly responded.
She called Gao Chuwu over.
With a few words of instruction,
Gao Chuwu and the three young men who had gone to the county town together last time,
after eating a full meal and packing provisions, set off toward Chengcheng County.
Li Daoxuan picked up his Lego bricks again.
He prepared to use them to make a temporary wall for Gaojia Village.
It didnât need any complex shapes.
He only had to connect the bricks one by one,
forming a long strip.
Then he gently placed the strip into the box,
arranging it in a circle along the outer perimeter of Gaojia VillageâŚ
The villagers were still gathering firewood everywhere at that time,
when suddenly they heard the sound of wind and thunder, and the earth shook.
They looked up.
They saw a huge, multicolored bizarre object descending in midair.
It landed all around the village.
It quickly surrounded all of Gaojia Village,
turning into an enormous âcity wallâ with only an open gate leftâŚ
The wall was surprisingly high at two zhang tall, and terrifyingly thick.
Its material was just a bit odd; not as hard as stone, it seemed like the surface could be cut with a knife?
âWow? Whatâs going on?â
âDoes Gaojia Village suddenly feel like Gaojia City?â
âWhat kind of strange wall is this?â
âIt has colors like a rainbow!â
Amidst the chattering villagers,
Gao Yiye climbed up along the âstairsâ to the top of the âcity wall.â
She stood at the high city gate and loudly spoke to everyone: âThis city wall was granted to us by the Great Deity.â
âIn the coming period, there might be many bandits causing turmoil.â
âThe Great Deity wants us to make a wooden gate to seal the gate opening.â
âHave people stand guard in shifts. If bandits attack, we will take up weapons and put on iron armor to protect ourselves.â
The villagers quickly acknowledged:
âWe respectfully obey the Great Deityâs commands.â
Li Daoxuan quietly watched.
The villagers quickly allocated some people to chop trees and make the gate.
Their craftsmanship was rough.
They felled trees as thick as an arm and stripped off branches.
Then placed them side by side and tied them together with grass ropeâŚ
At the same time,
under the arrangements of the Village Chief,
the villagers established the shift schedule for guard duty.
Two villagers carrying bows and arrows seized from bandits,
stood at the city gate, posing like âsentinels,â and it truly looked convincing.
Very good, now the village had basic self-defense capabilities.
As long as these men werenât foolish, if they saw bandits coming, they could block the gate and defend fiercely; the bandits wouldnât enter Gaojia Village.
And if they held out until he arrived, it would be fine.
Next, he just hoped Gao Chuwu, sent to the county town, would bring back something useful.
âŚâŚ
Meanwhile, outside the county office in Chengcheng County.
Thirty-Two changed into a neat long gown.
He faced the door-guarding constable and respectfully folded his hands: âIâŚâ
The constable said blankly: âThe County Lord has ordered that if itâs you coming, youâre not allowed in under any circumstances.â
Thirty-Two smiled: âIâve not come to see the County Lord.â
The constable was puzzled: âThen why are you here?â
Thirty-Two said: âI just wanted to inquire about any big events lately. When I served here as a clerk before, I treated you well. Could you give me a small tip without it being too much to ask?â
âThis is called repaying kindness with gratitude.â
The constable thought carefully.
True, this clerk always spoke the last four characters with an affected tone that annoyed people a bit.
But the man was decent; he had indeed helped him once before.
Giving him a little news wouldnât cause harm.
The constable lowered his voice: âLet me hint to youâtwo days ago, the County Lord sent several teams to some villages to collect grain. Do you remember how Mr. San opposed it and was driven out by the County Lord?â
Thirty-Two said: âI remember that incident very clearly; it was deeply etched in my memory.â
The constable continued: âTeams were sent to Gaojia Village, Wangjia Village, Zhengjia Village⌠but the Gaojia Village team didnât bring back a single grain.â
Thirty-Two thought to himself: With the Great Deity guarding there, it was no wonder they collected no taxes. He feared those officials had been dealt with harshly.
The constable went on: âThe Zhengjia Village team collected a little tax, less than required. The one to Wangjia Village gained the mostâthey beat up those lowly folks there, burned an unoccupied broken house, scaring the Wangjia Village people so much they trembled. Finally, taking advantage of darkness, they barged into the lowlifesâ homes and robbed them of their seed grain as tax.â
Upon hearing this, Thirty-Twoâs heart skipped a beat; he urgently asked: âSeed grain? You robbed them of seed grain? Heavens! How could you dare take such a thing? Havenât you heard the saying: âEven if starving to death, never eat seed grainâ? How could you all actually rob that? This⌠is utterly acting against justice.â
The constable wore an indifferent expression: âWho cares if they starve? The court pressures us constantly. If taxes arenât collected, the County Lord will face trouble, and all brothers under him suffer too.â
Thirty-Two grew very anxious: âItâs over! Wangjia Village will likely rebel.â
The constable sneered: âA bunch of lowlifesâwhat nerve do they have to rebel?â
Thirty-Two didnât dare waste time at the county office entrance any longer.
He quickly sprinted home.
He returned home.
Facing his wife, children, maids, and servants, he said: âQuickly, quickly, pack your belongings. We must leave the county town and hide for safety. This is called fleeing from danger.â
His wife was a plump middle-aged woman.
Hearing this, she asked in confusion: âRun away? Why?â
Thirty-Two rapidly said: âThree years of drought have left people destitute.â
âThe County Lord sent men to rob farmers of their seed grain.â
âThat will cause huge trouble.â
âWe must escape fast. A step too late and weâll suffer alongside the County Lord.â
âThis is called⌠ah, no time to think of a phraseâjust hurry, pack, and flee.â
Third Lady, hearing this, showed no tension: âWhy fear just a few villagers rebelling?â
âEven if they rebel, theyâll just become banditsâthey wonât attack the county town, will they?â
Thirty-Two lowered his voice: âYou donât understand!â
âThat Wangjia Village isnât ordinary. Thereâs a man named Bai Shui Wang Er, who came from Bai Shui County to join relativesâa well-known hero nearby.â
âWith one staff in hand, dozens of men canât near him; his fame spreads far.â
âIf he leads a rebellion, raising his arm for a call to arms,âoh goodness, itâll be awful. Chengcheng County and dozens of surrounding towns and villages could face catastrophe.â
âIn short, a wise man avoids danger. Since I no longer work at the county office, fleeing far away is wise.â