Daily Life in the Countryside After Being Reborn-Chapter 25 - 24 Miao Family Witch Mother

As the village chief of Ge Village, Jin Dafu had encountered more troubles in these past dozen days than he had in the first half of his life combined.

That day, upon leaving the agricultural office of the town government, hearing the mocking laughter behind him, Jin Dafu just wished he could find a crack in the ground to burrow into.

"Old Jin, it's not that we don't want to distribute the subsidy. You should know that the state is now pushing for development in the western regions, focusing on generating ability rather than providing aid. Your village has received agricultural subsidies for five consecutive years, yet remains on the 'poor village' list every year. I've also heard that most of the people in your village don't farm; every year they rely on the young people in the village sending back that thousand yuan or so, and brides from other villages get scared off just hearing about marrying into your village." The director of the agriculture office said, his two fingers bending and knocking on the desk surface, knocking metaphorically the village chief's old face as well.

Jin Dafu wanted to say a few words, but the director seemed to anticipate his disagreement and continued, "Don't say that the soil in the mountains is poor, the roads are impassable, or that villagers aren't cooperative. Look at the Dongnan Miao Village opposite you, they harvest bumper crops every year, even last year when they faced the disastrous flood weather, they still managed to produce and sell grain. That village is rich enough to be dripping with oil, while your village can't even scrape out a drop of oil." The more the director spoke, the lower Jin Dafu's back bent, and this honest man who was usually all smiles ended up not receiving the subsidy money.

Zhu Shijun was one of the few in the village who knew about this matter, and these days he was murmuring about it with the village chief. Those consulted included the village chief, the head of the village publicity team, and the village secretary Qian Yongfu. The idea proposed by the village chief was to go to the mountain Miao Village and see, as they were rich and we are poor, so it's always valid to learn from them.

There were opposing voices as well; the village secretary disagreed with engaging in diplomacy with the people from Miao Village, as the initiative he led to build a dam in the mountains for irrigating the rice fields had been rejected by Miao Village.

The compromise was that Zhu Shijun, who was older and from out of town, would take the lead, bringing along the "ignorant" Zhu Xiaoxian to apologize to the Miao Village.

Of course, all of these plans were made secretly, without telling Xiao Xian, and when they reached Xiao Xian, it was presented as "if you make a mistake, you need to admit it and apologize."

Xiao Xian felt heartache for those soy sauce meats and also thought about apologizing to that bad-mouthed little boy, feeling very uncomfortable, a state that lasted until she walked over the rope bridge above White Dragon Pond.

Upon entering Black Mountain, where Dongnan Miao Village was located, the village chief reminded the Zhu grandfather and grandson to pay utmost attention.

Black Mountain was over four hundred meters taller than Leigong Mountain, yet its trees were much taller, covering the sky and blocking vision wherever hands could reach and eyes could see. With each breath, one could smell the freshness of the grass and trees; the sun outside was blocked by layers of tree shadows, and if one was not careful, they could lose sight of the village chief leading the way.

"Xiao Xian, Uncle Jin also knows that this time it's tough on you, just admit your mistake and you don't have to say anything else. When Master Li is not home, Li Ye's mother, who runs the Li Family, is a worldly and educated person, she won't make things difficult for us," Regarding Yezi's mother, she was considered a leading figure in Dongnan Miao Village, the village chief didn't dare to speak frankly, fearing it would scare the newcomers from the city.

"Xiao Xian, why are you standing there, are you tired?" Seeing Xiao Xian only paying attention to the surrounding trees, Zhu Shijun hurried her a few times, worrying she might get lost.

The mountainous paths of Dongnan Miao Village were indeed difficult to navigate. Black Mountain's trees were a mix of subtropical and tropical species, the Miao Family knew how to conserve and protect the mountain using primarily Moso Bamboo, a plant well suited for conservation, therefore some of the surrounding woods even had trees that were over a hundred years old.

When in Ge Village, searching through the village and Leigong Mountain, the only tree that Xiao Xian couldn't see through was a fir tree. However, in Black Mountain, there were numerous trees that Xiao Xian couldn't see through. Amidst the endless woods, Xiao Xian sensed something off. Yet, she couldn't pinpoint what was wrong.

Xiao Xian quickly hurried over, and she and the village chief didn't notice that a large moth with gray patterns, which had been there as they passed, immediately took flight and landed on Yezi's mother's Miao skirt pouch before they arrived at Miao Village.

"Yezi, we have visitors, come down quickly." Li Ye had been confined at home for over a month. The village chief hid the incident concerning the grandson and grandfather of the Zhu Family, which was also why Li Ye didn't dare to roam outside carelessly.

More than ten years ago, before Yezi's mother married Li Quqi, she was the belle of Dongnan Miao Village. However, not a single man from the Miao family dared to provoke this flower, as Yezi's mother Miao Saisong was an apprentice to the Great Wizard of the village, and also one of the gu girls which appeared only once every few decades in the village.

Some might ask, isn't Gu only a concept within feudal superstitions? Indeed, the stories about Miao girls casting love poisons were exaggerated. After liberation, the state advocated for the elimination of feudal superstition, and people in Miao Village who spoke of Gu became fewer and fewer, eventually turning Gu into a taboo topic in the village.

Miao Saisong's Gu knowledge was learned from the Great Wizard of Miao Village, and she rarely spoke about her Gu learning days, even with her husband Li Quqi. She had just been admitted to high school that year, at a time when Miao Village had no roads. Wanting to leave the mountain, Miao Saisong had to climb over three deserted mountains. Naturally courageous, she didn't inform her family and left alone with clothes and food, carrying fifteen yuan, heading off to school.

Once she left, she got lost in the mountains. People from the entire village searched over hills and dales for five days without finding a living person or a body, and everyone thought she had died. About two months later, Miao Sai Feng appeared at the school gate, led by the Great Wizard. Li Quqi, who was a grade higher than her, hurriedly sent the news back to the village, and later the two young people always returned to the mountains together.

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After that disappearance, Miao Sai Feng had changed; not only had her courage increased, but she also started talking to insects and small animals by herself. Later, when the villagers saw that she could command a swarm of bees to attack those in the village who gossiped about her, the entire village eventually believed that she had gained divine powers during her disappearance and learned Gu Technique from the Great Wizard.

In the entire Miao Village, only two people did not shy away from Miao Saisong's matters; one was the Great Wizard, her later half-master, and the other was Li Quqi, who proposed to her when he was twenty and had a betrothal arranged with her.

Li Ye heard his mother's call while staring out the window at a flock of geese flying southward. Upon hearing her, he hurriedly "clattered" down the stairs.

It wasn't long before Ge Village Chief, Jin Dafu's harsh voice came from downstairs. His shout was heard by several households in Miao Village, and since Miao Family people love excitement, a few who were familiar with the Li Family immediately gathered around.

Xiao Xian sighed. Had she known she would have to apologize in front of so many people, she wouldn't have tried to turn the tables that day. Looking up, she caught sight of a head peeking out from a window—none other than Li Ye, whom she hadn't seen in months.

**

Traveling for business twice at the middle and end of the month, stability is priority, Fu Zi will stabilize the first night watch. After finishing the exhibition at the end of the month, there will definitely be additional issues. I wanted to be diligent today, but there was an unexpected power outage this morning, nervously typing this, thank you for your support.