The Sweetness of the Seventies
Chapter 491 - 462 Pursuit, Good Times, Paper Money_1

Chapter 491: Chapter 462 Pursuit, Good Times, Paper Money_1

Qi Ling nodded and, along with several companions, hurried off to investigate.

He Tiantian and Qi Daniu arrived in the wooden hut, where they collapsed on the ground, gasping for air.

Director Yang, upon hearing that He Tiantian had encountered four tomb robbers, grew even angrier. Those damned tomb robbers had destroyed so many things and would not meet a good end.

Most of these items would be strictly regulated during the new year and would likely end up being lost to foreign countries.

Thinking of this, Director Yang was heartbroken and deeply distressed.

He Jingyu, worried about his daughter, insisted on not letting her fetch the carrying basket. He led several young villagers to retrieve the basket filled with grass and wild chicken eggs.

"From now on, you’ll cut grass near here and not go up the mountain," He Jingyu said. Before the tomb robbers were caught, he was determined not to let his daughter go elsewhere to cut grass.

It was too dangerous, especially since there was a super large tomb on the back mountain, filled with innumerable treasures.

If this group of people wasn’t the same as the last wave of tomb robbers, it would mean that the tomb on the back mountain had already attracted many tomb robbers. There might even be more in the future, so He Jingyu deemed the back mountain unsafe.

He Tiantian nodded and said, "Got it, Dad. We’ll cut grass near the Peach Orchard and not go too far."

Tomb robbers are despicable, but at the same time, they dare not brazenly appear in front of people.

In the archaeological team, even though there weren’t many people, there were still seven or eight, plus the people sent from the village and the police, totaling more than twenty individuals.

Unless they were mad, those tomb robbers would not confront the archaeological team head-on.

Right after Director Yang sent out a request for reinforcements, the next day, an infantry company was directly dispatched from Huai City to protect the large tomb on the back mountain.

Only then did Director Yang dare to start excavating one precious item after another with peace of mind! What they’d seen before was merely a drop in the ocean.

Although the items stolen by the tomb robbers were precious, they hadn’t taken much.

What angered Director Yang the most was that the tomb robbers not only took away valuable items but also caused damage to the tomb; their methods of entering the tomb were highly destructive, damaging many useful inscriptions.

Archaeology starts with the word "study," which involves not only cleaning expensive ancient burial objects but also discovering who the tomb owner was, from which era they were, what kind of story they had, and the research value they provide to ancient culture and life.

With bodyguards stationed at the back mountain, the archaeological team’s work efficiency improved somewhat.

Even though Ma Guoliang had some ulterior motives, he couldn’t slack off during the hectic work.

While the archaeological team was in full swing, Village Chief Qi, with the villagers, had heeded the county’s call and repaired a good road leading to the county seat.

From Qijia Village, riding a bicycle, it only took two hours to reach the county seat; driving an ox cart took three hours, which was much quicker than before; even on foot, those with a quick pace could make the round trip in a day.

The villagers along the way were overjoyed, and a great weight was finally lifted from Village Chief Qi’s heart.

Back in the village, seeing that the crops in the fields and the peach trees on the back mountain and wild hills were well taken care of by He Jingyu and Wang Shuping, he was even happier.

Village Chief Qi had to walk around the Peach Orchard and Peach Orchard Hill twice each day before he could feel at ease.

As for the large tomb in the hills behind, Secretary Qi was reluctant to get involved; it was as if he was being forced to work at gunpoint. Since all those items had to be turned over to the state and had nothing to do with Qijia Village, he was not eager to meddle!

However, this tomb was the largest unearthed in recent years, its treasures and the identity of its lord were of great pedigree and shrouded in mystery.

Many reporters from different newspapers flocked to Qijia Village, and with their coverage, the name of Qijia Village was often seen in the papers.

At the same time, many people came visiting out of curiosity.

Aunt Liu lived at the entrance to the village and set up a tea stand, making a tidy sum of money and Grain Coupons.

Because the hills were crowded, now when He Tiantian had to provide the Snake King with Sacred Blood every month, she could only summon it back. But the Snake King was so large that it left her house in a complete mess every time.

Fortunately, every time He Tiantian woke up, the Snake King was gone, and the things in her house were tidied up.

He Tiantian’s days were uneventful but fulfilling, often receiving letters from Huo Yingjie written in advance. While reading them, she would often call him a "fool," yet her lips would curl into a smile.

Thus, autumn arrived in the blink of an eye.

Autumn was the season of harvest.

Village Chief Qi led the villagers in the autumn harvest.

The rainfall this year was excellent, not too much and not too little—perfectly timed and distributed. The crops in the fields thrived like never before, with the yield being twenty percent higher than the previous year.

The amount of grain contributed to state quotas remained the same as last year. As a result, the village could retain more grain this year, meaning that the villagers could receive more grain for themselves.

What made the people of Qijia Village beam with inexpressible joy was that the peach orchard tended by He Jingyu and Wang Shuping had amazingly yielded one hundred and twenty pounds per tree. One hundred peach trees had nearly produced thirteen thousand pounds of peaches.

If the price remained sixty cents a pound, and one pound of Grain Coupons, they could sell for eight thousand dollars and eight thousand pounds of Grain Coupons. For Qijia Village, this was a significant fortune. Each household could receive seventy to eighty dollars and seventy to eighty pounds of Grain Coupons.

Village Chief Qi knew that the villagers had enough grain but lacked Industrial Coupons. If someone wanted Industrial Coupons, Secretary Qi would help exchange them for other types of coupons to purchase some industrial goods.

He Jingyu and Wang Shuping had made significant contributions, and Village Chief Qi intended to reward them for their efforts. After consulting others, he decided to treat He Jingyu and Third Grandma Qi as two households, allowing them to receive a double portion of the goodies.

The villagers knew that it was thanks to the husband and wife team that they had this new way to earn money, so although they were envious, everyone agreed with the decision.

Remembering who helped them when they drank water from a well, [the villagers] could do just that.

Village Chief Qi specifically assigned diligent and meticulous individuals from the village to take care of the newly planted peach trees on the barren hills.

Tasting the sweetness of profit, the villagers tended the trees with even more dedication than they had for their own crops.

The large tomb in the hills was finally excavated by the arrival of winter, and all the valuable items had been taken to the museum in Huai City. All that was left in the hills behind Qijia Village were rectangular pits and shattered stones.

Village Chief Qi felt it was indecent to leave someone else’s grave exposed, so he applied to the higher authorities to cover the pits, but his request was denied. They said it was a heritage site that people might visit in the future.

After getting this response, Village Chief Qi felt like cursing; this was surely destroying the Feng Shui of Qijia Village!

However, as a mere village chief, he didn’t dare to oppose the authorities directly. Upon returning, he secretly made a lot of joss paper, burning it in the middle of the night.