How can I bow my head and serve the powerful officials?

After all 2,000 refugees entered the city, the city gate behind them slammed shut with a heavy and harsh creaking sound.

Inside the city, the yamen runners locked the doors. Outside the city, the government soldiers were fully armed and looked solemn. They placed sharp wooden fences at the entrance of the city wall, waiting for the arrival of the second batch of refugees.

The night darkened.

When the refugees entered the city, they were too embarrassed to live in other people's houses, so they slept on the ground near a porridge shed that distributed porridge and rice. After waiting for the government to distribute relief grain, they went outside the city to find a piece of land that could be reclaimed to see if they could grow food.

The land in their village was so dry that it was hardened and could not be used to grow crops. They could only wait for the next spring rain and then go home to till the land and plant crops again.

After spreading bedding on the ground and settling the family down, when it was almost the evening hour, some people headed towards the government office to see what was going on with Mantou and the mountain-splitting and river-splitting incident.

The people of Jiangdu County also headed towards the government office. They also wanted to hear how an ordinary person could cut through mountains and split rivers.

When they arrived at the government office, they found that a large platform had been set up at the entrance. On the platform stood a young, fat villager with a lot of rice and flour buns piled behind him. On both sides sat several villagers who could play gongs and drums, trying out the gongs and drums in their hands.

One of the refugees shouted hoarsely to the fat villager, "Hey, brother, I heard that if you come here to listen to stories, you can get steamed buns. Is that true?"

The young fat villager on the stage coughed twice, slightly adjusted his rather plain linen clothes, and replied to the man, "My fellow villager, you are right, but there is still one thing missing. You have to understand what my story is about before you can get the steamed buns."

Everyone couldn't help but look at each other.

What's not to understand about this story?

"Young man, then please tell your story quickly!" everyone urged, wanting to finish listening to the story and get the steamed buns.

"All right!" The fat boy clapped his hands, and the villagers behind him beat the gongs and drums with a tight rhythm. Everyone fell silent and heard him speak in a loud voice, "I am Zhu Xiaobiao, a boy who has not read much. I only like to go to teahouses to listen to stories. Today I will tell you a myth story I heard in Yuzhou."

A fairy tale? A story about gods?

Everyone couldn't help but prick up their ears.

"It is said that in the past, there were two high mountains in the south of Jizhou and the north of Yuzhou. One was called Taihang and the other was called Wangwu. The mountain range stretched for seven or eight hundred miles and was seven or eight thousand feet high.

On the north side of the mountain lived a villager named Yugong. He was almost ninety years old. Every time he wanted to go to the other side of the mountain, he had to take a long detour. So he called his family together and said, "I will work with you to flatten these two steep mountains so that the road can go all the way to the other side of the mountain. Do you support me?"

The whole family expressed their support, and then his wife asked, "Where should the excavated soil and stones be thrown?"

The crowd said: "Throw them to the edge of Bohai Sea."

So Yugong took his three strongest children and grandchildren up the mountain. His neighbor was a widow with an orphan who was only seven or eight years old, but he jumped to help him. They worked together to chisel stones and dig soil, and transported the soil to the distant Bohai Sea in dustpans. They could only make the round trip once when the season changed from winter to summer.

An old man in the village who was wise and knowledgeable laughed at Yugong and said, "You are so stupid! With the remaining years and strength you have, you can't even move a blade of grass on the mountain, so how can you move soil and stones?"

Yugong sighed and said, "Your brain is really stubborn, so stubborn that it can't be opened, even orphans and widows are not as stubborn as you. Even if I die, I still have my son. My son will have grandsons, and my grandsons will have sons. My sons will have sons, and my sons will have grandsons. There will be endless descendants. But the mountain will not grow higher or bigger. Are you still worried that you can't dig it flat?"

The old man had nothing more to say.

The gods of the two mountains heard about this and were afraid that Yugong would keep digging, so they complained to the gods. The gods were moved by Yugong's sincerity and ordered the two sons of Hercules to carry the two mountains away, one to the east of Shuofang and the other to the south of Yongzhou. From then on, Yugong could travel without the obstruction of mountains.

Zhu Xiaobiao finished his speech slowly and then asked, "Dear fellow villagers, what can you hear?"

Everyone was fascinated by what he heard. When they came to their senses, some people said, "I think this Yugong is really stupid. Why did he throw the stones so far? It would be better to give them to the village stonemasons to make tables and stools. If a flash flood comes, they will not be washed away and destroyed!"

Some people also said, "Although Yugong has good ideas, his descendants can only dig mountains for generations, not farming or studying. Wouldn't that mean they will have no future and still have to rely on the women in the family to support them?"

"Yes!" someone agreed, and said, "In the end, it was the gods who helped Yugong! What kind of opening of the mountain is that? I thought we could really flatten Yuji Mountain!"

The villagers were talking about it, until a handsome student in the crowd suddenly said, "I have a different feeling. This story should tell us that we should not give up and not be afraid of difficulties. As the saying goes, sincerity can move mountains and open rocks. Although Yuji Mountain is big, as long as all the people in the county come to help, the mountain will be dug up sooner or later."

Zhu Xiaobiao immediately clapped his hands and said excitedly, "This young man spoke very well, please come up!"

The student gently pushed through the crowd and went up to the stage. Bian Yangchun and others who were listening to the story in the crowd took a look and said, "Ah, isn't this Brother Jingze?"

Ouyang Jiu chuckled and said, "Interesting, interesting. Really interesting. Let's see what they are trying to reveal."

After Jing Ze came on stage, Zhu Xiaobiao eagerly picked up two steamed buns from the pile and stuffed them into his hands, "Little brother, if you can speak, then speak more!"

Jing Ze nodded, turned around and said to the audience, "The county town east of Yizhou has to rely on God's mood to farm because Yuji Mountain blocks the river. If it rains, there will be a good harvest, but if it doesn't rain, there will be no harvest. If a river can really be dug out of Yuji Mountain, we can use river water to irrigate the fields and we won't have to rely on God's mood anymore."

"Some people may say that we can't finish digging it with our ability, but just like what the young man next to me said, if we can't finish digging it, our children and grandchildren will do it. If our children and grandchildren can't finish digging it, their children and grandchildren's children and grandchildren will do it. When we finish digging it, their children and grandchildren's children and grandchildren will no longer have to rely on God's mood when they farm the land."

At this time, some villagers immediately questioned, "What's the point if we don't enjoy it?"

Anyone who thinks about digging mountains for the rest of their lives will back off. After all, they are farmers, born to deal with the land. If they suddenly go digging mountains, not to mention whether they have enough strength, will they be able to support their family?

What if everyone starves to death? Where will our offspring be?

Hearing this, Zhu Xiaobiao could not help but take a step forward and said to everyone in a serious tone, "I am not a famous person. I am just an honest commoner like everyone else. I live just to make a living for myself and my children and grandchildren. It would be best if I could send my children and grandchildren to study in a private school, pass the imperial examination and become a minor official. Then I can bring honor to my family and benefit the common people. Don't you agree?"

Everyone couldn't help but nod, feeling that what was said touched their hearts.

"But God is cruel. A heavy rain, a big mountain, a big river, is driving our people to death. One drought and one flood, there is no way for us to survive. What's the point of the court coming to our Yizhou for disaster relief every year? It can't solve the fundamental problem!"

Zhu Xiaobiao shook his head and sighed, and the gongs and drums behind him also beat out a tune of indignation and compassion, making everyone present sigh and lament.

"Yes! The land is still dry and the water is still flooded. If my roots weren't here, I would have run away long ago!"

"Alas, it's not easy to run away. When people heard that we are from Yizhou, they didn't want to let us settle in the city, for fear that all the people of Yizhou would come to seek refuge! Weren't many people driven back the year before last?"

"Why was I born in Yizhou..." Someone sighed, tears of sadness falling.

Zhu Xiaobiao continued, "Yes! How come I was born in Yizhou? And not in those good places without floods and droughts? And not even in the prosperous and dreamlike capital where I was born rich and noble?"

"Are we destined to suffer a miserable life?" Zhu Xiaobiao stepped forward, his face filled with grief and indignation. "Are we destined to endure such a natural disaster?"

"Are we born without the blessing of heaven or gods? Are we born sinners, and must endure a lifetime of suffering to atone for the sins of our past lives?"

His voice was stirring, high, compassionate and angry. Those who listened could not help but recall the hardships they had experienced while fleeing famine, and they all covered their faces and sobbed, feeling grief-stricken.

Are they really unfortunate? Were they sinners in their previous lives?

Zhu Xiaobiao's tone suddenly changed at this time, and he said seriously and firmly: "No, it's not."

Everyone was stunned.

"Do you really believe in the existence of gods?" Zhu Xiaobiao smiled slightly. "Yugong moved the mountains. His sincerity moved the gods, so they sent Hercules to move the two mountains. But do you know the truth?"

the truth?

Everyone was even more confused. What truth could there be? Wasn't it just that the gods moved the mountain away?