Chapter 120: Taking a Beating, Bamboo Reprimand

Uncle Old Liu listened, looking around left and right before turning his gaze to Liu Quan. Liu Quan scratched the beard at his jaw and retorted, “Uncle Old Liu, don’t just listen to Suo Hulang’s side. Look at their end—they’re flooding the fields without anyone guarding, letting the water run all over the place; how wasteful is that? Over here, we’re waiting just to irrigate our land, but they just let the water flow everywhere and hog it all. Why should that be?”

“Why? Because it’s our turn to use the water these past two days. What business is it of yours how we use it? Besides, we’ve fertilized our fields well, and when the water floods over to your side, the fertilizer flows with it. How does that count? No wonder our harvests are never as good as yours.” Suo Hulang shot back.

Old Liu listened, headache creeping in as the two continued to argue. He gently intervened, “We live next to each other; shouldn’t we be like family? Is it really worth fighting over such a small matter? Liu Quan, take some men and go to the southern part of the village, near the Najia fields. It’s our turn to use the water today; you go guard it and make sure no trouble happens again.”

Then he turned to Suo Hulang, “Suo Hulang, your fields are already full. More irrigation now is just wasting water and fertilizer. If we let you keep opening the sluice and flooding, won’t that give your side the advantage? Stop quarreling and go back to your fort to check if the other fields have been watered.”

But Suo Hulang was not convinced. Pointing to the other side of the terraced fields, he said, “Uncle Old Liu, only this side is flooded; the other side is still dry. Since it’s our turn to open the sluice, you have to let us.”

“All right, you can open it. But you must send people to guard and guide the water properly.”

Old Liu nodded and added, “If there are problems, we talk and resolve them properly. Don’t go blaming each other’s clans. We all belong to the Greater Xia Kingdom—citizens of the same country, equal in status. Now, let’s go back. You all guard the irrigation well.”

“Pfft, it’s not like we want to keep watch... it’s your people who won’t let it go.” A man in his thirties from Suo Hulang’s side sneered.

Liu Quan, who was about to leave with his men, snapped at that. Swinging his hoe fiercely, he charged at the man. “Suo Huhu, I’m not going to tolerate your arrogance. I’m going to fight you to the death!”

Seeing his man about to lose, Suo Hulang immediately raised his axe, shouting to his group to attack.

“Bang! Bang! Thud! Thud!”

“Ow, ow, ouch!” Just as the two village groups clashed, a figure suddenly flashed forward, followed by the sound of crashing metal and then the thuds of people falling and cries of pain.

Peng Liang sent everyone flying into the fields.

His brows knit sharply, cold eyes scanning the crowd. “Who dares to make a move?”

“Who are you? This is a matter between our two villages; why do you interfere?” someone shouted.

“Yeah, your accent’s clearly from out of town. Mind your own business!” others jeered.

Some of those who’d fallen couldn’t get up and were still cursing.

Di Ying stepped forward, smiling gently. He cupped his hands and circled once before he spoke, “Calm down, calm down. Fighting over such a small matter until someone gets hurt—can we just watch that happen? This mountain is high, with snow capped peaks that feed the streams and creeks, giving us water and land to farm. But in recent years, the snow has been less each winter, and summers grow hotter. Some mountain streams have dried up; the creeks have less water. Soon, no one will have enough to eat. You may fight for this year’s water, but what about next year? The year after? And beyond? We’re all neighbors; let’s take a step back for the sake of everyone. Come, sit down, and let’s think of a better solution.”

“Ha! Who do you think you are? You think just because you say so, you can come up with a solution? If there was one, we wouldn’t be fighting and killing each other every year.” Liu Quan muttered.

Di Ying chuckled, “Brother, if I do find a solution, would you be willing to follow it?”

Liu Quan slapped his thigh, standing up. “If you can solve this big problem, whatever you say, we’ll do it!”

Di Ying nodded and then looked to Suo Hulang. “What about you?”

Suo Hulang and Liu Quan had been rivals for over a decade. Hearing Liu Quan agree, Suo Hulang, who was a proud man, also stood and said, “Same here! I represent Suo Hu Fort; all of us there will follow suit!”

“Ha! As if I don’t represent our Liu Village!” Liu Quan declared, slapping his chest loudly. “I, Liu Quan, speak for all of Liu Village—we agree!”

Di Ying smiled warmly, listening to both sides. Seeing no opposition from the others, it was clear neither Liu Quan nor Suo Hulang had exaggerated.

He gestured around. “There’s plenty of bamboo in these mountains, including many old bamboo stalks. Gather some.”

He then pointed halfway up the mountain. “See that flat ring of land? Though too high and cold for crops, you can dig a wide mountain ring canal there. Once dug, it will store water. You can build up the outer edges and dig deeper at the bottom to hold more water. When anyone needs to irrigate, they can connect bamboo tubes with holes punched in them, sealing the far end, and channel water from the storage canal. Water will spray through the holes, making irrigation fast and efficient. When done, just pull out the tubes—easy and convenient. You can even connect several tubes at once without causing disputes.”

The villagers were stunned by his words, then began gesturing excitedly, rehearsing the process in their minds.

“Hey! You know, this just might work!” Liu Quan slapped his thigh again and said to Suo Hulang, “We accept your bet. The outsider’s got the idea; Liu Village agrees. What about you?”

“Don’t worry! Every man at Suo Hu Fort is a hero; we accept too. Same as always, we’ll dig according to each village’s land!” Suo Hulang pounded his chest in agreement.

Carving mountains, breaking rocks, digging canals—all routine tasks for these villagers. With work to do, everyone was too busy and tired to quarrel or fight.

After seeing Old Liu home, Di Ying and Peng Liang gave him three acupuncture treatments in front of the villagers, left a prescription and ten taels of silver, politely declined the gift of a sheep, and then departed.

Once they left, villagers, amazed at Old Liu’s much-improved complexion, gathered around him, chattering eagerly and asking questions.