The autumn harvest is the most important event of the year for any village that relies on planting.
Of course Otamura is no exception.
There are 376 households in the entire village, with a population of nearly 2,000, more than 90% of which are planted with spiritual veins. The total of the spiritual fields opened is more than 6,000 acres, and the average yield per mu is about 450 kilograms.
This kind of yield per mu is much higher than the spiritual fields that Wang Chen cultivated in Yunyang Sect, because the land here is more fertile and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is much richer.
However, Lingmai is harvested only once a year, so the annual output is much lower.
According to the rules, 40% of the 450 kilograms of harvest will be handed over to the Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry in Wancheng as tribute, 20% will fill the village's public treasury, and the farmers will keep 40% for themselves.
As the village chief, Wang Chen was in charge of the harvesting of grain in autumn, and he worked hard for ten days before finally finishing it.
It was his first time as a village official and he lacked an in-depth understanding of the situation at the grassroots level in the Xihai Lingyu. If a few elders in the village hadn't taken the initiative to help, he would have been in trouble.
Despite this, Wang Chen was very busy during this period, and his daily practice time was shortened a lot.
As a result, before Wang Chen could take a breath, he discovered a new problem.
Big problem!
The autumn grain was harvested and the tribute grains were handed over in full. When Wang Chen went to take inventory, he was shocked to find that the grain warehouse built inside the ancestral hall was empty.
It can literally starve a mouse to death!
All the grain stored in the public treasury comes from farmers and is used by the people for the people. In years when the harvest is not good, it can be used to supplement the villagers' rations.
In addition, the stored grain is also used for public expenditure projects in the village, such as building roads, digging canals, reclaiming wasteland, etc. These grains are used to subsidize villagers participating in labor.
Under normal circumstances, the public treasury has a certain amount of old grain accumulated every year.
Last year was a good year, and there was no large-scale labor levy. It stands to reason that there is still a lot of grain in the public treasury.
As a result, Wang Chen couldn't find even a grain of spiritual wheat inside!
Wang Chen was very lucky that he opened a public treasury together with a few old people in the village, otherwise he would be suspected of embezzling public food!
This is so deceptive!
Seeing such a scene, the elders of Datian Village looked at each other and didn't know what to say.
One of the old men coughed and asked cautiously: "Village chief, what do you think we should do?"
Several other people responded: "Yes, yes, what should we do?"
In fact, everyone knows very well that the grain stored in the public treasury must have been taken away by Huang Deqi.
Because Mr. Huang has been responsible for managing the public treasury, all the keys and accounts are on his person.
The public treasury was built very solidly and had restrictions set up. If the food inside was stolen by others, it would be impossible for the restrictions to remain intact.
The problem is that Huang Deqi has been captured a long time ago, and there is no news so far, so it is obviously more serious than bad.
If no one can be held accountable, it becomes a stupid debt!
Several elders unanimously passed the blame to Wang Chen.
Wang Chen didn't take the blame: "I will send a letter to the Patrol Department to explain the situation. This year's public treasury accounts will be redone, and you will be responsible for the management from now on."
Wang Chen guessed that the grains were most likely stolen by Huang Deqi to the gray wolf.
This guy will do anything to save his life, let alone embezzle public funds.
But he doesn’t care about such nonsense until he’s full, and he doesn’t even have enough time to practice!
Just let a few old guys play by themselves.
Several elders had no choice but to take over the responsibility. Who let Wang Chen alone have the final say in Datian Village now?
After dumping the blame, Wang Chen could finally continue to practice with peace of mind while waiting for news from Luo Zhen.
While practicing and waiting, the weather became colder day by day, and most of the villagers in Datian Village put on thick cotton-padded jackets.
That afternoon, someone suddenly knocked on the door of the village main house.
Wang Chen happened to be practicing Vajra Boxing in the front yard, so he stepped forward and opened the door.
I saw a dark and skinny little girl standing at the door. Her clothes were thin and she looked haggard.
When she saw Wang Chen opening the door, she was startled and took a step back in a hurry: "Village, Mr. Village Chief."
"I'm not a monster, what are you afraid of?"
Wang Chen smiled and said, "What's the matter with you coming to see me?"
"I, I, I..."
The little girl said "I" for a long time without saying anything, and she looked very frightened and uneasy.
She obviously wanted to run away, but she couldn't move her feet for some unknown reason.
"Xiaoya?"
At this moment, Xiao He appeared behind Wang Chen and asked in surprise: "Why are you here?"
The little girl burst into tears: "Sister Xiaohe, please save my grandpa!"
As she said that, she knelt down on the ground.
"Oh!"
Xiao He was startled and quickly reached out to help him.
But Wang Chen took action faster and directly used magic power to lift it up: "Tell me what's going on."
The little girl wiped her tears, and with encouragement from Xiao He's eyes, she sobbed and told the reason.
It turns out that her family is a hunter and has no land for planting, so they usually make a living by hunting and gathering.
This little girl named Xiaoya's parents died young and she was raised by her grandfather. She also has a younger brother.
In order to store food for the winter, Grandpa Xiaoya went into the mountains to hunt every day these days, but there was no harvest.
As a result, something happened when we went into the mountains early this morning.
Just now, her grandfather struggled back with his seriously injured body and passed out in front of the house.
Xiaoya was so frightened that she dragged her grandfather into the house with all her strength, and then ran over to Xiaohe for help.
Because in Datian Village, Xiao He has the best relationship with her.
"Take me to see it."
After understanding what happened, Wang Chen immediately rolled up his sleeves to wrap up Xiao He and Xiao Ya.
He activated his magic power and took the two of them into the air.
Xiaoya's home is located in a lonely wooden house at the northwest corner of Datian Village, near the foot of the mountain.
When Wang Chen arrived with them, he heard crying coming from inside the house.
"grandfather!"
Xiaoya was so frightened that she rushed into the room as soon as she landed.
Wang Chen followed in.
I saw a gray-haired old man lying unconscious on a wooden bed with blood on his face.
There was a little boy crying loudly lying beside the bed.
He stepped forward and pressed the old man's carotid artery, and found that the other man's heartbeat was still there, and he couldn't help but breathed a sigh of relief.
Saving people is like putting out fires. Wang Chen didn't hesitate at all. He immediately took out a healing pill from his storage bag, stuffed it into the old man's mouth, and used his magic power to send it into his belly.
Then he took out Jin Chuang Yao Powder and sprinkled it on the wounds on the opponent's chest, abdomen and arms.
After some simple treatment, Xiaoya's grandfather quickly regained consciousness.
The healing pill that Wang Chen took out was no ordinary product, and the effect was still very good.
It was like saving a life.
Xiaoya cried with joy and knelt down with a bang to kowtow to Wang Chen.
This was the only way she could express her gratitude.