Li Xing, a government official, stumbled into the county government office and loudly reported to Han Wen, the county magistrate who was sitting in the courtroom looking gloomy.
Li Xing was Zheng Chun's subordinate. After Su Hao pointed out several well locations and ensured that these wells could produce water, Zheng Chun was overjoyed and immediately sent Li Xing back to the county town to report the news. From Zhegui Township to the county town
, a distance of more than ten miles, Li Xing, under Zheng Chun's strict order, ran all the way back in a daze, until he was so tired that he foamed at the mouth.
"Li Xing? Why, Zheng Chun finally dug a well?" Han Wen raised his eyes and looked at Li Xing who was kneeling below, and asked slowly.
"The well has been drilled. It produces 400 tons of water an hour. It's a good well!" Li Xing shouted hoarsely.
"This is the first well Zheng Chun has drilled?" Han Wen continued to ask.
"This is..." Li Xing was stunned, "This is the 16th well."
"It took 16 wells to drill one well, but Zheng Chun still has the nerve to come back and announce the good news!" Han Wen said angrily.
"Excuse me, Lord Magistrate." Li Xing kowtowed, "Zheng Dianli said that the well could not be drilled before because the local people offended the Dragon King. Yesterday, he took all the men in Longkou Village to worship the Dragon King.
Then water came out of the first well."
"Absurd!" Han Wen scolded. The theory of ghosts and gods was just to deceive the people. After all, he was also a student of sages. How could he believe such a thing? In his opinion, this was just a coincidence.
"It's true. When Zheng Dianli sent me back, he was leading people to dig a second well. He said that he guaranteed that this second well would still be able to produce water. Next, he still has three wells. He dares
Guaranteed, all three wells are good wells." Li Xing followed what Zheng Chun taught him and assured Han Wen.
Han Wen became interested: "Is what Zheng Chun said true?"
"Zheng Dianli said that if the three wells below do not produce water, he is willing to be punished." Li Xing said.
"Okay, then I'll wait. You go back and tell him that if he can really dig three good wells in one go, the county will reward him heavily." Han Wen said, and after that, he took out a piece of silver and threw it in front of Li Xing.
, said: "You have worked hard in reporting the news. This is a reward for you. Go down and have a rest."
"Thank you, Lord Magistrate!" Li Xing picked up the broken piece of silver and weighed it. It weighed about seven or eight cents, and he couldn't help but be overjoyed. He ran all the way back and was able to get a reward, so it was not an injustice.
After Li Xing retreated, Han Wen turned his head and asked Master Fang Mengjin who was sitting beside him: "Master, do you think what Zheng Chun said is credible?"
Fang Mengjin frowned and said: "This Zheng Chun has average ability to do things, and occasionally harasses the villagers. I have always been uneasy about what he does. This time he was digging wells in Zhegui Township, and he drilled them continuously.
There are 15 abandoned wells, and I am planning to propose that they be withdrawn. Now it is not easy for him to drill a good well. As for boasting about going to the sea and claiming that every well in the future will be a good well, this is too bizarre.
"
Han Wen nodded and said: "I also think this matter is strange. When digging wells in each township, it is almost necessary to dig three abandoned wells before finding a good well. No one dares to say that he can make every well a good well. This Zheng
Since Chun has dug a good well, even if he replaces three waste wells with one good well, it will be enough to make a difference. But he did not say that, but instead claimed that the next few wells would not be ruined. This was not done to himself.
Is it set up?"
"If something goes wrong, it must be a monster." Fang Mengjin said, "Could it be that he led the villagers to worship the Dragon King and really moved the gods?"
Han Wen said: "How can we trust the things about ghosts and gods? I think it may be that Zheng Chun is afraid that I will punish him, so he makes a promise lightly, which is also a bit of a gamble on his own luck, right?"
"Let's take a look and then talk about it?" Fang Mengjin replied.
Han Wen and Fang Mengjin did not wait too long. Just after noon the next day, when Han Wen was still resting in the inner house, a government servant came in and reported that Li Xing was here again and asked to see him in the lobby.
"Master Magistrate, I am so happy!"
Seeing Han Wen walking into the lobby, Li Xing still said the same thing. Compared with the first day, the smile on his face was brighter. It was a kind of excitement from the heart.
Yesterday, a good well was drilled, and everyone still felt a little uneasy. Today, as soon as the well came out with water, everyone felt at ease, knowing that the scholar named Su Hao was indeed capable of reaching heaven and earth. Even a small government official like Li Xing,
I am also very excited about this, because the better my team's performance in drilling wells, the more rewards they will receive in the future, which is directly related to personal interests.
"Why, another good well was drilled?" Han Wen asked.
"That's right." Li Xing replied.
Han Wen said: "Zheng Chun didn't open another hole next to the well yesterday, so there were two wells, right?"
This method of fraud has also been encountered by Han Wen in the past. If a good well has been drilled, water will generally be produced if another well is drilled. However, drilling one more well in this way is of little value, because the water in the same range
Groundwater is limited. If one more well is drilled, the water output from the two wells will be equivalent to the previous well.
Li Xing shook his head: "No, no, how dare Zheng Dian to deceive the county magistrate like this? The well drilled today is 3 miles away from the well drilled yesterday, and it produces 250 tons of water an hour."
"Is Zheng Chun really sure?" A trace of doubt flashed in Han Wen's eyes. He suddenly slapped the table and shouted loudly: "How dare you, Li Xing, use your sweet words to deceive this county!"
Li Xing was frightened by Han Wen's voice. He didn't react for a long time. He didn't know what he said wrongly, which made Zhixian so angry. He kowtowed repeatedly and said: "Master Zhixian, everything I said is true."
ah!"
Han Wen said: "Tell me the truth, how did Zheng Chun find these well locations?"
"This..." Li Xing was speechless. Zheng Chun meant that he didn't want to mention too much about Su Hao's role in digging the well, so that Zheng Chun's contribution would be highlighted. On the contrary, if Su Hao's matter
If Han Wen finds out, then Zheng Chun's achievements will not be reflected.
However, how can Koreans be so easy to deceive? Zheng Chun had dug 15 abandoned wells in one go, and suddenly his character exploded and he was able to drill good wells one after another. There must be other reasons behind this. Before Zheng Chun dug the wells, he
Dare to claim that the well dug must be a good well, which means that Zheng Chun has found a capable Feng Shui master. How can Han Wen not ask for answers to such a matter?
"Excuse me, Lord Magistrate, we did find a man. He chose the locations of these two wells, and as expected, water came out as soon as he hit them." Li Xing was frightened and quickly told the truth.
"Well, that's pretty much it. Where did you find a Feng Shui master with such talent? How come this county has never heard of it?" Han Wen's face softened a little and he asked.
Li Xingdao: "I asked the county magistrate, this man is not a Feng Shui master, he is a scholar from Longkou Village."
"Xiucai?" Han Wen was a little surprised, "How can a scholar still know how to dig a well?"
"Master Magistrate, you don't know that this scholar is very talented." Now that the secret has been revealed, Li Xing no longer concealed it. He said to Han Wen with joy: "This scholar is only 17 years old.
He looked thin and weak, and looked like he would fall over if the wind blew. But he only took one look at it and said that the well location we chose was wrong and we would definitely not be able to draw water. Our official Zheng Dianli said to him: You are such a scholar, can you point it out?
A well location that can produce water? Guess what?”
"What?" Han Wen was also attracted by Li Xing's narration and couldn't help asking.
Li Xingdao: "The scholar shook his feather fan, counted with his fingers, then pointed to the southeast and said: From this direction, you can dig a well 700 steps, 60 feet deep, and can produce 400 tons of water per hour! As a result, the well digger
The craftsmen managed to reach 60 feet, and water came out, and it happened to be 400 tons per hour."
"There is such a thing!" Han Wen was really shocked this time, "Who is this scholar's name? You said he is only 17 years old, so he should be the scholar who took the boy's examination in the past two years. How can I
No impression at all?"
"This scholar's name is Su Hao. He was the scholar who was selected last year." Li Xing replied.
"Su Hao?" Han Wen tried desperately to recall, but he couldn't remember such a person. There are many students who take the exam in the county every year, but if they are really good students, Han Wen should have some impression.
Fang Mengjin, who came after hearing the news, stood aside and said leisurely: "Sir, I have some impressions of this Su Hao. His articles are well written, but there is no aura in them, and he does not seem to be a man of great talent."
"However, such a person can not only choose the right well location, but also estimate the amount of water. Mr. Fang, have you ever heard of anyone who has such an ability?" Han Wen asked.
"Unheard of." Fang Mengjin shook his head and said, "Things under the ground are so changing. Who can have an insight into them? I think this scholar may just be making bold words to please the public."
"Master Magistrate, Master, this Su Hao is definitely not talking nonsense!" Li Xing knelt down and argued: "Yesterday, he said that the well produced 400 tons of water an hour. The people in the village tried it with buckets of water, and it was almost the same.
The water that comes out of one hour is about 400 dans. He said in advance that the well today will produce 200 to 300 dans of water per hour. After it was drilled out, it turned out to be 250 dans. Our Feng Shui master Chen Guanyu said
I plan to take him as my teacher."
"Tell Zheng Chun to get rid of that Chen Shengun of yours. There is water in Zhegui Township, but he pointed out 15 wells and couldn't get a drop of water. Why should such a liar be left here?" Han Wen said casually.
"Yes!" Li Xing agreed quickly.
"Is this true?" Fang Mengjin looked at Han Wen, "If there really is such a strange person, it would be a pity just to use it in Zhegui Township. Now the whole county is digging wells to fight the drought, and there are many abandoned wells.
, not to mention wasting money and food, delaying the farming season, and the obstacles would be great. If I could get his advice, not to mention choosing the right well for every well, even if there was a good well among the two wells, it would be much better than now.
Already."
"Li Xing, you rush back to Zhegui Township immediately and summon the scholar Su Hao to the county government office to reply." As Han Wen said, he picked up his pen and prepared to write a letter for the summoner. The so-called letter is actually an ancient letter of introduction.
Write the specific matters on a piece of paper, sign it with a red pen, and stamp it with the official seal. This will be legally binding.
"No sir." Fang Mengjin quickly stopped Han Wen and said, "If this Su Hao really has such talent, he is a sage and should not be treated lightly."
"That's right." Han Wen also reacted. A capable person like this should be recruited. It would be too disgraceful to hand out a letter and arrest him like a criminal.
"Li Xing, go and pass on my message, saying that the county invites the scholar Su Hao to come to the county office to speak. You have to be polite when you speak and don't disturb the scholar. Do you understand?" Han Wen said.
"I understand, I will go and invite Su Hao now." Li Xing responded loudly.