The Country Maiden: Fields and Leisure
Chapter 309 Not Good!

Chapter 309: Chapter 309 Not Good!

"Wang Laosi, have you lost your mind?" the Fifth Child of the Song Family covered his face, spitting out a mouthful of bloody saliva along with half a tooth, nearly driven mad with rage.

"Who’s gone mad? Why are you yelling at my sister?" Wang Yongping clenched his fists, ready to throw another punch if the Fifth Child of the Song Family dared mutter another word.

The Lizheng’s son was almost freaking out; there weren’t enough hands as it was, and now they were fighting amongst themselves!

"What’s all the noise for? Are we not going to work? Hurry up and get busy; the village is waiting for water! Can all this noise conjure up water? Shut your mouths, all of you. If you mess up the crucial task of securing water, just see how you’ll be dealt with when we get back!"

He glanced at Wang Yongzhu discontentedly, finally remembering that she had received an award from a royal lady, who should not be offended lightly.

Barely suppressing his fury, he said, "Song Chongjin, take the Wang family’s girl to the side, it’s not fitting for a young lady to do such physical work!"

He had made up his mind that he would tell his father upon returning that the Wang family was too unreliable. What were they thinking, assigning a task like this to a girl? What were they trying to achieve?

Song Chongjin turned a deaf ear, his gaze fixed only on Wang Yongzhu. Although he did not understand much, his intuition told him that whatever Wang Yongzhu was doing, she must have her reasons, and all he needed to do was to wait and make sure she was not disturbed.

On the other side, the Lizheng’s son turned purple with anger when Song Chongjin and Wang Yongzhu ignored him. He was about to say something else when he saw a fiery dragon winding its way from the upstream village.

This is bad! The people from the upstream village are coming so quickly?

"Brothers, grab your weapons!" Without needing to be told, everyone put down their work and raised their hoes and shovels, vigilant of the approaching fiery dragon.

Especially Wang Yongping, who took the forefront.

At this critical moment of observation, Wang Yongzhu glanced over at Wang Yongping briefly before looking down to continue her check.

The people from the upstream village arrived, and the villagers on both sides, holding shovels and other farm tools, looked at each other as if they wanted to devour their opponents.

Everyone knew each other well, so there was no need for small talk.

The Lizheng’s son spoke up, "You people from Jinquan Bay are out of line. Your fields are filled with water, yet you dam it up, blocking the flow. Are you trying to starve us downstream to death?"

"You make it sound so easy. We’re facing a severe drought this year. If we release the water, what will we use in the days to come? Besides, what’s our relation to you? Why should we care whether you live or die?" the leader from the other side was tough and confrontational right from the start.

"Jin Laosan, are you sure you want to be this ruthless?" the Lizheng’s son was still asking.

One of the men behind Jin Laosan, with sharp eyes, spotted Wang Yongzhu’s figure, and immediately jeered, "Oh, look, brothers, have you seen? These cowards from Qilidun are scared of us. Is that why they brought a woman to appease us? Are you hoping to make us happy by offering us this lady, so we’ll give you a break and let some water through?"

"Fuck—your—damn—mother—" Wang Yongping’s eyes turned red with fury. His sister, whom he treasured and doted on like a precious jade, was being mocked by these bastards.

With the shovel in his hand, he charged over and knocked the foul-mouthed man out with a single blow.

Wang Yongping’s action was a signal; the villagers on both sides, already on a knife-edge, picked up their weapons and charged toward their opponents.

Song Chongjin’s face turned an iron blue, his fists clenched and unclenched, he couldn’t hold back, and a murderous intent surged to his head.

He dashed into the melee in two strides, having already locked onto the position of the man who had been knocked unconscious. At the moment, Wang Yongping was being attacked by two or three people and was somewhat unable to fend them off.

Song Chongjin stepped forward, passing by the man who had been rendered unconscious. With a slight pause of his foot, a soft crack sounded. The man groaned in his unconsciousness, and one of his arms was twisted at a strange angle.

With the addition of Song Chongjin, the situation briefly became a stalemate.

Under the darkness of night, illuminated by torchlight, a brawl erupted by the riverbank. There were muffled groans, shouts, and the dull impacts of shovels and hoes striking flesh.

By now, both sides were blinded by rage, looking at each other as if facing their father’s murderer.

They had also lost all restraint in their hands, each blow delivered with the intent to kill.

Feeling the shift in the atmosphere, Song Chongjin glanced around. Almost everyone had lost their reason. His heart skipped a beat as he protected Wang Yongping and tried to retreat.

Meanwhile, he had to keep an eye out for any disturbances around Wang Yongzhu.

Fortunately, at the moment, Wang Yongzhu was on the opposite riverbank, safe from the conflict for the time being.

Distracted, a heavy whooshing sound struck Song Chongjin’s ear. He dodged nimbly, avoiding a hoe aimed at his head, and retreated a few steps back.

Wang Yongzhu had been observing the dam structure all this time. After a while, she finally discovered that the main part of the dam was composed of two large tree trunks joined together, filled in with weeds entwined among the branches.

At the junction of the two trunks, there was a spot about one meter wide, fashioned into a large net pocket by intertwining vines, filled with stones and incredibly heavy. To clear it quickly, the best way was to remove these stones to reveal a gap and then use the force of the water to quickly push the trunks apart.

Wang Yongzhu finally found the knot of the vine net pocket. She reached into the water, found the knot, and pulled it out. It was more than two meters long, and she tested its feel in her hand.

Just as she was about to exert force, she heard Song Chongjin’s voice filled with alarm behind her, "Yongzhu, behind you—"

Wang Yongzhu, with her keen senses, immediately felt a breeze attacking from behind.

Bending at the waist, she dodged the attack and used the momentum to leap down into the water channel, pulling with all her strength.

The net pocket of stones wobbled, and the surrounding water flowed down purposefully.

Wang Yongzhu felt hopeful, wrapped the vine around her waist, and pulled steadily. Slowly, the pile of stones, weighing about a thousand jin, began to move. Then, with the force of the water, "Crash—" it was pulled aside all at once, and water surged through the newly created gap.

At the same time, the knot in Wang Yongzhu’s hand came loose, and the net scattered, with the stones tumbling out and quickly being washed to one side by the water.

The man who had attempted to sneak up on Wang Yongzhu was dumbfounded as he watched her, a seemingly delicate girl, use her own strength to move a pile of stones that would usually require the effort of seven or eight men from the village.

It took him a long while before he regained his senses to yell, "It’s no good—." He no longer had the chance to finish his words.

Song Chongjin, while the man was attempting to sneak up on Wang Yongzhu from behind, had already kicked away the villager from Jinquan Bay who had been entangled with him and dodged past several others who were attacking. He arrived just in time, and with one palm strike, the man was knocked unconscious.

Although he had already witnessed Wang Yongzhu’s surprising strength, upon seeing the large gap that she had cleared by herself, Song Chongjin felt his legs go weak.