After finishing his moment of triumph, San Shier got down to business.
There was still much to be done in the village. Truly, a hundred things awaited revival.
Li Dao Xuan reached down and nudged aside the Lego blocks surrounding the reform-through-labor convicts. The hundred or so convicts inside timidly shuffled out.
They still didn't fully understand that the Gao Village Family was under the protection of a deity. They had no idea how that enormous wall had suddenly appeared to encircle them, nor how an opening had just as mysteriously appeared to let them out. In short, they were filled with awe and fear.
San Shier stood before them and announced loudly, "You convicts, listen well! Starting today, you will atone for your sins through labor..."
The convicts thought to themselves, So we have to work? We fought all night, barely slept, and our stomachs are empty. Now we have to work on top of that? Today is going to be brutal.
Just as they were thinking this, they heard San Shier declare, "Your first task is to cook. The people of the Gao Village Family have no time to cook for you. You will prepare your own meals."
The convicts were dumbfounded.
Their first job was to cook for themselves?
That did not sound like reform-through-labor. It sounded like a reward.
Heavens above. In this great drought, if you can feed me until I am full, I will call you my own father. And you call this labor to reform our sins?
Soon, the villagers of the Gao Village Family lent them pots, bowls, and ladles. The convicts went up the hillside to chop dead trees for firewood, fetched water from the large pond, set up their pots, and began boiling water.
San Shier's family servant pushed over a single grain of white rice, as large as a millstone. This one grain weighed over a hundred pounds. He tossed it in front of the group.
"This is your rice. Divide it yourselves."
The convicts stared at the giant grain, utterly bewildered.
"What... what is this thing?"
"Is it rice?"
"B-big rice!"
"Why is it this huge?"
The servant laughed and scolded them. "You ignorant fools. This is divine rice bestowed by Dao Xuan Tianzun. A single grain is enough to feed a hundred of you. Hurry and give thanks to the Tianzun."
The convicts still had no idea who Dao Xuan Tianzun was, but that did not matter. If someone gave you food, you gave thanks.
They offered a messy chorus of gratitude, then borrowed chisels and hammers to break the giant grain into smaller chunks. They placed portions into each pot, cooked it into porridge, and each person devoured two large bowls.
With full stomachs, their spirits immediately lifted.
Even when they had followed Zheng Yanfu and Zhong Guangdao, they had never eaten their fill. Though they had looted official grain, they dared not eat freely. They had to conserve supplies while hiding from government troops in the mountains, surviving on less than half a meal each time.
This was a feast they had not seen in a long time.
With their bellies full and their strength restored, a few of them could not help but entertain thoughts of escape.
Now that we have strength, if we make a run for it, we might get away...
But then they hesitated, patting their full stomachs.
Where would we find another full meal after escaping?
Forget it. Better to reform through labor obediently.
After cleaning the pots and bowls, the convicts headed up the hillside to cut trees and process lumber. They needed to make doors and windows for every house inside the Gao Village Family.
This was no small task.
There were over two hundred rooms, which meant over two hundred doors and even more windows. They would be busy for quite some time.
With a group of convicts willingly making doors and windows for their homes, the villagers of the Gao Village Family suddenly had more time on their hands.
The women redoubled their efforts weaving cotton cloth.
The men continued their own work, forging armor plates, making pottery jars, carving statues.
After experiencing two bandit attacks, they now understood one thing clearly. Laziness would get them killed. Protecting themselves was the top priority, and the most urgent task was to equip every man in the village with armor as quickly as possible.
Inside and outside the village, everything bustled with activity.
No one was idle.
By noon, the sun was blazing overhead.
Li Dao Xuan sat beside the craft box with a bowl of pickled vegetable and shredded pork rice noodles.
Not only was the village lively, but the northern hillside had also turned into a hive of activity. Convicts making doors and windows were scattered across the slope, creating an atmosphere of relentless labor.
Li Dao Xuan kept tapping the "North, South, East, West" buttons on the side of the box, adjusting his view to watch the tiny figures at work, making sure the external camera captured more interesting footage.
After tapping "North" a few times, he suddenly felt something was off.
Huh?
That large rock at the edge of his vision. It had not been there a moment ago, yet now it had suddenly appeared.
After a brief pause, he realized the truth.
His field of view had expanded again.
He first checked the number displayed outside the box. It still read 330, unchanged. Then he compared it with footage he had recorded of the hillside earlier.
The field of view had expanded outward by about ten meters in every direction.
Ten meters was not much, barely noticeable, but it was enough to reveal that extra rock.
He tapped the directional buttons again.
Sure enough, the view had expanded in all directions.
Perhaps the expansion was too small, so only a tiny fraction was added beyond 330, and the system simply rounded it off.
When did it expand?
He had no idea.
But the reason was not hard to guess.
Li Dao Xuan thought to himself, It seems that in the past short while, Madame San has made progress in Cheng County.
At the same time, in Cheng County, inside the City God Temple, in a side hall.
Madame San wore a plain blue Daoist robe, her hair tied in a simple bun. Combined with her slightly plump face, she looked like a gentle lay devotee as she sat cross-legged on a prayer mat.
Her personal maid stood just behind her, holding a medicine jar, like a quiet attendant.
A man in patched clothing knelt before Madame San, kowtowing repeatedly.
"Thank you, Dao Xuan Tianzun. Thank you. After taking the divine medicine, my son's fever broke. His life is saved. Thank you, Tianzun."
Madame San smiled gently.
"It is good that he is saved. The Tianzun will surely be pleased. Do you know how you should conduct yourself from now on?"
The man bowed again.
"This humble one will never forget the Tianzun's teachings. From now on, I will strive to do good and help others as much as I can."
"Very good. You may go."
Madame San waved her hand.
The man offered endless thanks and left.
At the temple gate, he ran into an old woman holding a small girl, crying bitterly.
He asked, "Old mother, why do you weep?"
The old woman sobbed. "My granddaughter has had diarrhea for days. She grows thinner with each passing day. We are poor. We cannot afford a doctor or medicine. I could only come here to beg the gods to spare her life."
The man's expression turned serious.
"Old mother, perhaps you have not heard. In this temple's side hall, there is a lay devotee carrying out the will of Dao Xuan Tianzun, relieving suffering without asking for a single coin. People like you, who cannot afford treatment, should go there and seek her help. Ask for the divine medicine granted by the Tianzun. There may still be hope."
The old woman's face lit up with joy.
"Which side hall? My eyesight is poor. I am afraid I cannot find it."
The man sighed.
"Forget it. I have already sworn to do good deeds. I will take you there myself."