Lucky

If only the Zhou family did such things, even if the village head did not hold a grudge against him, he would not have a favorable impression of him. If only the three families whose houses collapsed did such things, the village head would, at most, slightly reduce his anger. However, if the majority of the village, or even all families, engaged in such behavior, he felt that what was once considered wrong became normalized. Who would be angry about normal things?

Magistrate Fu himself felt that this was normal; after all, the weather had only cleared up completely in the past two days.

Upon observing Magistrate Fu's usual behavior, the village head also perceived this matter as normal.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the moldy rice and wheat in everyone's yards; he couldn't help but sigh.

His family situation was fine, with no damp and moldy rice and wheat, but there were quite a few relatives who faced such issues. As the village head, he was very worried.

Magistrate Fu was increasingly worried, with the wrinkles on his forehead deep enough to catch mosquitoes, drawing Manbao's attention.

Old Mr. Bai also came. After all, it was the magistrate visiting, and as a member of Qili Village, he naturally had to come and greet. As they walked together, he naturally observed the villagers' situation.

Qili Village was not large, with only about sixty households. Even if they visited twenty households, it would only take a couple of hours. It happened to be noon, and the sun was becoming increasingly scorching. The village head looked at the sun and then at Old Mr. Bai.

Old Mr. Bai, who was walking beside Magistrate Fu, smiled and said, "Magistrate Fu, you have been working hard all the way." "Why not rest at my place for a moment, drink some water, and wait for the scorching sun at noon to pass before continuing the inspection?"

He sighed, "I don't know what's wrong with the weather this year." There was continuous heavy rain before, and in the past two days, the temperature has gradually risen. "It seems hotter than usual, and some people who went to the fields to fertilize almost fainted from heatstroke."

Magistrate Fu squinted and looked at the clear sky, with not even a wisp of cloud floating. He nodded with a sigh.

Turning his head and seeing the two children hiding behind Zhou Dalang, he waved and smiled, "I just saw you and forgot to ask, where are your families?"

Manbao and Baishanbao had committed a significant act, and they felt somewhat guilty in the presence of the magistrate. At first, they had hidden very well, but when called out, they were a bit at a loss.

Manbao subconsciously held Baishanbao's hand, and the two children's hands briefly met before they pulled away. Seeing everyone looking at them, they could only step forward to bow.

Manbao pointed to the village entrance and said, "Magistrate, my family is right there." "You just went in and had a look."

Earlier, the Zhou family had also been sunning some sprouted rice that was left over. Although they had been dried once, with such good sun today, it was naturally better to dry them again.

However, Manbao felt guilty at that time, so she hid and watched from the back.

Magistrate Fu had a strong impression of that family, so he asked, "Are those two connected blue brick houses your family's?"

Manbao nodded vigorously.

Magistrate Fu nodded thoughtfully. No wonder they were willing to send a girl to school; it turns out they were wealthy.

In Magistrate Fu's opinion, besides the two Bai families, the Zhou family had the strongest foundation in all of Qili Village, possibly even stronger than the village head's family.

How could he tell?

From the house, the rows of blue brick houses appeared so new and fresh that even the village head's house, which he visited this morning, wasn't as impressive.

Magistrate Fu was unaware that the Zhou family appeared wealthy but was actually hollow inside. His impression of Old Zhou was quite positive, and he had gained more respect.

After all, they were capable people, capable of not only producing many sons but also accumulating a rich family background.

"Both of you, walk with me." Let's talk later. He smiled at Old Mr. Bai and said, "Old Mr. Bai, do you mind if we add two more children to the gathering?"

Old Mr. Bai was delighted, as one of them was his nephew. He quickly said, "You are absolutely welcome."

Of course, Magistrate Fu also invited the village head and Old Zhou to accompany him, intending to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the situation after visiting the Bai family, as he had not yet assessed the fields.

Old Zhou, attending such a meeting for the first time, followed along, looking puzzled.

Both the village head and Old Zhou had some experience. Whenever the magistrate visited the countryside, even if he didn't come to Qili Village, the village head would always rush to Dali Village early. If the magistrate asked some minor questions that the village head didn't know, it would be the village head's responsibility to answer.

So, the village head quietly said to Old Zhou, "Uncle Jin, don't be afraid." Just answer the questions when the magistrate asks. If he doesn't ask, we won't speak to avoid any mistakes.

Old Zhou nodded and glanced nervously at Manbao walking beside the magistrate.

Magistrate Fu was testing their studies, and he was slightly surprised when he learned that they had already finished reading the Book of Songs and were now reading the Doctrine of the Mean.

Before the Chinese New Year, he had contacted the most respected nephew in the clan, who was now twelve years old and had just started reading the Doctrine of the Mean.

Magistrate Fu pondered for a moment and couldn't resist testing them with a few lines from the Doctrine of the Mean as they walked.

Both Baishanbao and Manbao were able to recite the text and understand its meanings.

Baishanbao's understanding appeared to be deeper than Manbao's, as he explained it as if narrating a tale. She was also a bit of a chatterbox. Initially feeling a bit guilty as they walked and Magistrate Fu spoke kindly to them, she pushed her guilt aside. When asked, she blurted out everything.

Magistrate Fu, who had interacted with her before, clearly knew her tendency to chatter. He smiled and listened to her, finally seizing the opportunity during a pause in her chatter to change the subject.

It had only been half a year since they last met, and this child seemed to be much more talkative than last year.

Old Mr. Bai invited Magistrate Fu to his home, and the villagers dispersed after escorting them to the village entrance. As the group made their way towards the bridge, the villagers couldn't help but whisper to each other, "Uncle Jin is truly fortunate to have been invited by the magistrate to join him for a drink."

"Maybe it's all thanks to Manbao?"

"Oh, right, from the tone of voice, it seems that Manbao knows the magistrate."

"You have a good memory." Last year, when they went to repair the river embankment, did Manbao and the magistrate meet and talk for a long time when they went to see Zhou Si? Zhou Si talked throughout the entire winter, and my ears almost became calloused.

"Now that you mention it, I think we are quite lucky." "If we hadn't repaired the river embankment last year and it had burst, our Qili Village would have been mostly submerged too."

"Yeah, I heard that Xiaoluo Village was flooded, and two people were washed away." "Our small flood took two lives." "How many people do you think were washed away at the burst site?"

The conversation slowly veered off track, shifting to random topics.

On the other hand, after examining the two children, Magistrate Fu and Old Mr. Bai's discussion also shifted to the children's education.

In this regard, apart from Old Mr. Bai, the rest of the group did not share the same views because of their diverse family backgrounds.

At least they didn't realize how challenging it was to motivate their children to study. From their perspective, if the family can afford to send their children to school, the children should feel appreciative and content.