Chapter 5, Clan Meeting, Water Theft (1)

The young and middle-aged men from the village gradually arrived, filling the open space outside the ancestral hall. At this moment, the door of the ancestral hall creaked open, and three elders emerged from within. The leading figure was much shorter than the two elders on either side of him, yet he possessed an intangible authority that caused people to instinctively overlook the two elders beside him and focus their attention solely on him

"Patriarch, this is a natural disaster, beyond the power of us ordinary mortals to resist." - One can tell at a glance that this person has attended a private school for a few days, as his speech is quite eloquent.

The tall young man bowed once more and withdrew into the crowd

"In order to address the irrigation issues in the village, I visited Yanhe Village yesterday in advance," Jiang Jinchuan said. "In the past, Yanhe Village would not pay the slightest attention to requests from small villages like ours. However, yesterday, they unexpectedly showed some respect to me."

Uncle Tiancheng, I am aware of this situation. Jiang Zhuliu said: "The weather is indeed extremely dry. What has the clan leader summoned us to discuss? Is it perhaps a request for rain?"

The Jiang clan members do not possess as many tricks as Jiang Zhuliu; they all spoke out to comfort the clan leader

At this point, Jiang Jinchuan deliberately paused, looking at everyone with a sense of pride, creating a moment of suspense.

A few days ago, Jin Hai, Jin Shan, and I discussed that the only way to overcome the current drought is to open a channel to divert water. The channel is already in place, and we use it every year; it just needs a little dredging now. The key issue is the water, specifically river water

"Patriarch, you have devoted yourself tirelessly and selflessly for the livelihood of the clan. Such kindness is beyond our ability to repay, so how could we blame the patriarch?" — This person, perhaps having attended the county school, clearly possesses superior skills in flattery compared to the previous individual

"Patriarch, rest assured, which scoundrel would dare to blame you? The butcher's knife in my hand is not for show"—there's no need to ask, this person is indeed a butcher.

Everyone, please do not rush; let me finish speaking first." Jiang Jinchuan pressed his hands down to calm the crowd.

So you called me to the ancestral hall just to discuss this nonsense? Damn, do you want me to be a scapegoat? Absolutely not! With this in mind, Jiang Zhuliu said to Jiang Tiancheng, "Uncle Tiancheng, my family only has five acres of dry land left. What's the use of seizing water? It won't even be irrigated anyway. It seems I don't need to participate in this water-seizing operation."

A tall young man stepped forward and respectfully replied, "Honorable Clan Leader, aside from Jiang Dachui who has not yet returned, all the other households are present."

The Xia Qin River flows through the west of our village. In the past, during droughts, we only needed to open a gap in the embankment of the Xia Qin River to divert water for irrigation. However, this year the situation is different. Due to the severe drought, the abundant water flow of the Xia Qin River has turned into a trickle. Moreover, the villages upstream along the river have built dams on the Xia Qin River, intercepting the river water solely for their own irrigation needs.

"No!" Jiang Tiancheng shook his head and said: "It is about seizing water."

Today, Jinchuan has gathered everyone here to discuss matters regarding drought relief. Given the current situation, the drought appears to be extending into the autumn season. If we do not find a solution soon, it is likely that the autumn harvest will be completely lost

This year, the weather has been unusual, and a rare drought has occurred within a hundred-mile radius of Jiang Village. The term "rare" refers to two aspects: first, the continuous drought during the spring and summer seasons. Since the onset of spring until after the wheat harvest in summer, not a single drop of rain has fallen in this area, and it appears that the drought is far from over, seemingly extending into autumn, resulting in a continuous drought across spring, summer, and autumn; second, the limited scope. In the past, significant droughts affected areas within a thousand-mile radius, spreading across several provinces. However, this time, the drought is peculiar, affecting only the hundred-mile vicinity of Jiang Village, while other regions enjoy favorable weather. In modern meteorological terms, this situation is referred to as a small watershed climate anomaly. Yet, during the Northern Song Dynasty, people were not familiar with such terminology and simply regarded it as a strange and rare drought.

In the flow of the river, there is a joy in the heart; the Chinese habit of roll call is indeed powerful, to the extent that even a family meeting during the Northern Song Dynasty required a roll call for such a trivial matter

The short old man is Jiang Jinchuan, the patriarch of the Jiang clan. The elderly man with a red face to Jiang Jinchuan's left is Jiang Jinhai, his third younger brother; the one on his right, with a sinister expression, is Jiang Jinshan, the eldest of the second branch of the Jiang family and also the military advisor to the patriarch Jiang Jinchuan, though this military advisor is often prefixed with the term "dog-headed".

Since he has already impersonated Jiang Zhou's identity, Jiang Zhuliu must participate in the discussions; only then can he strive for the greatest benefit for the Jiang family during the negotiations. He put down his chopsticks and said to Jiang Dalu: "Alright, you take your brother there."

At this moment, Jiang Zhuliu finally realized the seriousness of the situation. It turned out that during the Song Dynasty, the so-called local customs and clan regulations were even more formidable than the laws of the court

This young man is named Jiang Dalu, and his father, Jiang Tiancheng, is the most upright among the Jiang clan members. This time, when the clan held a meeting to discuss matters, he was concerned that Jiang Zhou would miss out by not attending, so he specifically asked his son to come and call him.

"Water grabbing?" Jiang Zhuliu widened his eyes. This term was not unfamiliar to him; even in the technologically advanced twenty-first century, it was common for farmers to engage in violent conflicts over water during droughts. Instances of severe injuries leading to disabilities were not rare, and it was quite normal for a few people to die in such incidents. However, generally speaking, the scale of these conflicts would not be large, as the public security department's 110 system would quickly respond before the situation escalated, deploying a significant police force to suppress both parties. But in the Northern Song Dynasty, once a violent conflict over water occurred, the situation would be far more tragic than what Jiang Zhuliu's era could compare to. At that time, with transportation being underdeveloped and information being isolated, it often took ten days to half a month for the authorities to receive news of the conflict. By then, those who were meant to die had already perished, and the water that needed to be seized had already been taken. What could the authorities do then?

Outside the ancestral hall, there were people greeting each other with bows, and the sounds of laughter and playful banter filled the air, creating a commotion akin to that of a marketplace. However, when the three elderly men stepped out of the hall, the surroundings suddenly fell silent. The Jiang clan's younger members instinctively closed their mouths and directed their gaze towards the short-statured elder.

The Jiang clan members indeed widened their eyes as they looked at Jiang Jinchuan, desperately pondering the underlying reasons: what exactly caused the riverside village to show such respect to the old clan leader? And what respect did they, in turn, offer to the old clan leader?

A few hot-blooded young men could not help but shout: "Chief, please give the order! At your command, we will immediately rush upstream, breach the dam, and let the river flow out."

Understood, you may leave now

Shh! Jiang Tiancheng covered Jiang Zhuliu's mouth with one hand. He glanced left and right at the surroundings, and upon seeing that no one was paying attention to them, he finally felt relieved

However, most of the older individuals do not act impulsively; they are well aware of the power of Yanhe Village. Yanhe Village is a large village with over 3,000 residents, while Jiang Village has just reached a population of 500. In comparison, the disparity in strength is evident. Merely the difference in population is not enough to instill such fear in the men of Jiang Village; what truly makes them wary is the flourishing culture of Yanhe Village. To illustrate, in the past decade alone, Yanhe Village has produced one fifth-rank prefect and one seventh-rank county magistrate. It is said that the poor should not contend with the rich, and the common people should not confront the officials. This time, even if Jiang Village were to win in a physical confrontation with Yanhe Village over the water from the Qin River, as long as Yanhe Village were to invoke the power of the government, how many could withstand it?

Thank you all for your kindness. Jiang Jinchuan finally allowed his hands, which had been behind him, to come forward. He clumsily placed his hands together and bowed slightly to the crowd as a gesture of gratitude

Jiang Jinchuan cleared his throat lightly, and a dignified expression appeared on the square faces of those present. He glanced around the room and asked, "Is everyone here?"

"Alright, stop overthinking it. Let's assess the situation first," Jiang Tiancheng said as he patted Jiang Zhuliu's shoulder. "In case a brawl breaks out, remember to be cautious. You have no siblings like others; your family has only you as the sole heir. You must ensure that the family line continues."

Having seen it often in movies and on television, one knows that in ancient societies, when faced with a drought, officials and clan leaders would organize rain-seeking rituals. Jiang Zhuliu assumed that today Jiang Jinchuan had gathered the clan members for the purpose of seeking rain

Jiang Jinchuan nodded in satisfaction, receiving a positive response, with a prestige increase of 3

Regarding this matter, Jiang Zhuliu has also heard Yuan Dong'er mention it. Their family sold their only irrigated land and library to fund Jiang Zhou's participation in the provincial examination, leaving only five acres of dry land on the hillside. Yuan Dong'er expressed her worries, saying that if it does not rain, the seedlings in those five acres of dry land are likely to wither and die.

The clan has long established regulations. The descendants within the clan must prioritize the interests of the entire family. If someone prioritizes their own selfish interests at the expense of the clan's welfare, then all members of the Jiang clan have the right to execute this harmful individual.

"This child, have you been outside for two months and become foolish?" Jiang Tiancheng reproached, saying, "If the people from the main house hear you say this, they will report it to the clan leader. You won't even need to participate in the water dispute; the clan members will expel you from Jiang Village first."

Jiang Zhuliu looked at Jiang Jinchuan and felt amused: "What! Is this what you call 'deep remorse'?" Jiang Zhuliu had never seen such a 'puffed-up' style of remorse in his entire life.

Jiang Jinchuan clasped his hands behind his back, took a step forward, and addressed the crowd: "Brothers and nephews, this year we are facing a severe drought. As the elder of the Jiang clan, I feel deeply ashamed for not being able to help our people withstand this disaster."

With the innocent and lively Jiang Dalü leading the way, Jiang Zhuliu successfully found the Jiang family ancestral hall. Upon arriving outside the hall, a middle-aged man with a full beard was waiting; he was Jiang Tiancheng. Jiang Tiancheng had arrived some time earlier and had already clarified the matters to be discussed today. At this moment, seeing Jiang Zhuliu arrive, he quickly grabbed him and explained the situation.

Due to the prolonged drought, summer crops have suffered severe shortfalls. The irrigated fields that can be watered are barely achieving 60 to 70 percent of their usual yield, while the dry land that cannot be irrigated has produced even less than 20 percent of its usual output. If this trend continues, and if it does not rain and the land cannot be irrigated, the autumn harvest may face total failure