Reborn as a Cube Man in the Late Ming Dynasty

In the afternoon, at the junction of the two villages, on a hillside covered with yellow sand, a dozen or so people from Liujia Village were already standing there.

"Yawn~ How boring! We've been standing here for almost the whole afternoon, why haven't the people from Zhangjia Village arrived yet?"

"You should be grateful you're not being made to work the early morning shift. Don't get distracted, just bear with it a little longer, someone will be here to relieve us soon!" one of them said with a smile, his eyes fixed on the distance, his expression suddenly turning serious.

"Quick! Go and call everyone else over. Be fast, the people from Zhangjia Village are here!"

"Okay, I'll be right there! Be careful." With that, one of them nimbly got up and ran towards the village.

In the distance, the people of Zhangjia Village all had solemn expressions, holding various farm tools in their hands. The blades gleamed in the sunlight, extremely sharp, clearly having just been sharpened on a whetstone.

Before they arrived, they were prepared to fight to the death, even if it resulted in deaths.

After all, this time was completely different from before; everyone knew perfectly well that they were there to steal water.

In a severe drought, fighting for water is a matter of life and death.

But if there's no water, their village will be like a frog slowly boiled in water—it's only a matter of time.

Today, either we have to share the water issue, or one side of the two villages will be completely unable to stand up!

"Hey, people from Zhangjia Village, listen up! Stop for now! I know why you've come – isn't it for water? Just wait there, we'll bring it to you right away!" shouted the people from Liujia Village.

"Did I hear that right? The people from Liujia Village actually offered to bring us water?"

The people from Zhangjia Village stopped, their faces full of confusion.

They had considered many scenarios, but they hadn't thought about how to deal with this one.

"Should we continue fighting?"

"This isn't just about water. Although Zhang Yongyuan is a scoundrel, he's still one of our villagers, and we have to get justice for him."

The people of Zhangjia Village discussed this, and then sent out a loud-voiced person to repeat it.

"Bullshit!" the man from Liu Family Village spat, his anger flaring. "It was clearly people from your village who came here to steal things, and you're turning around and accusing us! Besides, when did we cut off your water supply? That water was a gift from the Immortal Lord!"

"Damn it, I knew that bastard Zhang Yongyuan was hiding something. He actually went to another village to steal things. I'm so ashamed."

Upon hearing this, the arrogance of the people in Zhangjia Village immediately subsided, as stealing was ultimately a despicable act.

"Your village would be so kind, but who knows if your water is poisoned?"

"Stop being so indecisive! You're ungrateful for my kindness! Take it or leave it, we'll fight if you want!" Someone from Liujia Village couldn't hold back any longer. He stepped forward, holding a farm tool, and glared at me, cursing.

"Come back! Have you forgotten what the village chief told us? Don't start a fight." The people next to him quickly pulled him out.

"I was just angry and said something back, but they twisted the truth and said we cut off their water supply." The man said, then obediently retreated.

At this point, the people of Zhangjia Village were at a loss and all looked at Zhang He, who was standing in front.

"Did Liu Dexi tell you to say that?" Zhang He asked.

"That's right."

Zhang He nodded knowingly, then turned to the people of his village and said, "In that case, let's wait a little while and see what they're up to."

"Village chief, we know you have a connection with the village chief of Liu Family Village, but this is a serious matter and cannot be delayed!"

Seeing some commotion in the ranks, he continued, "I know you want to take advantage of the fact that you have fewer people now, but look at the people of Liu Family Village. Although there are fewer people now, they are all full of energy. If a fight breaks out, we will be the ones who suffer."

Having stabilized the situation in his village, Zhang He leaned on his cane and waited quietly.

The two groups faced off, and time ticked by.

About ten minutes later, people from Liujia Village came rushing over, each carrying a shoulder pole with two buckets strung together.

That bucket was completely filled with water!

Perhaps because they were in such a hurry, the water in the bucket was slowly spilling out as it was shaken. Seeing this, everyone in Zhangjia Village felt heartbroken.

What puzzled Zhang He was that Liu Dexi, who had leg problems, was able to keep up with the group.

The group carried water and placed it in front of Zhang He.

"Is all this water for us?" Zhang He asked Liu Dexi, who had stepped forward, his voice trembling as he suppressed his joy.

"Okay," Liu Dexi nodded, then continued, "You can use this water and the fish for now. Next, you take two people who can make decisions and come with me. I'll take you to the water source!"

"Your villagers don't have any objections to taking us to the water source?" Zhang He looked at Liu Dexi with surprise. "Aren't you worried that there won't be enough water for our two villages?"

"Don't worry, this is the result of discussions among the villagers. As for water, don't worry, there will be plenty. You'll see when we get there!"

Zhang He had the villagers carry water and a few fish back to the village, and then he called two men who were quite respected in Zhangjia Village to follow Liu Dexi.

Zhang He and Liu Dexi walked side by side in tacit understanding, while the two men from Zhangjia Village silently followed behind them, keeping a distance of five steps.

They walked in silence. Since the conflict between the two villages erupted, they hadn't had the chance to walk side by side like this for a long time, even though they had a thousand words to say, they didn't know how to begin.

"Who is Xianjun?" Zhang He asked.

Liu Dexi looked at Zhang He meaningfully: "Brother Zhang, if I told you that's a deity, would you believe me?"

"I see," Zhang He muttered in shock, "Now I understand. No wonder the people in your village were willing to give us water."

"You believe it?" Liu Dexi was stunned for a moment. He had already thought out the next steps.

Zhang He didn't believe it, so he took him to see the endless water source, which shattered his worldview. Who would have thought that he would actually believe it?

Why is it a bit of a shame?

"Of course, given the past grievances between our two villages, it's absurd that your village would agree to bring us to this water source. Unless something even more absurd happened, it would be impossible for you to make such a decision."

"If a deity descended to earth, then everything makes perfect sense."

"You'd better hide some of those fish," Zhang He suggested.

Liu Dexi asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

Zhang He looked at Liu Dexi with suspicion: "Haven't the people in your village heard? That corrupt official Zhang Douyao sent people to the village entrance to collect taxes. If they couldn't pay, they beat them to death. Several villages have already had a lot of things looted!"

These days, everyone in their village is focused on Bai Xianjun's affairs, and no one goes to the city, so naturally they haven't heard these rumors.

Liu Dexi was shocked to hear this and asked incredulously.

"Didn't we just pay our taxes? It's only been a few days and they're back again! Do they even want us ordinary people to live?!"

"Well, who can argue with that? But what can the common people do against the officials? In short, we must hide well and not be discovered!"

Liu Dexi nodded emphatically: "I understand!"

……

After they had inspected the water source, just as they were preparing to return...

The people from Liu Village rushed up to Liu Dexi. He glared at the three men from Zhang Village and said, "It's terrible, Village Chief! Our village has been robbed again! And your house door was opened; I bet the things inside were stolen too!"

"What?" Liu Dexi's face turned ashen.

He stiffly moved his neck, looking at Zhang He with disappointment: "Brother Zhang, is this your plan?"

His house was specially reserved for the immortal lord by the villagers who went to great lengths to prepare it. Since the house was taken care of, the villagers have sent people in to clean it every day.

Those who go in are very careful and cautious, and they leave immediately after they are done.

"No, this was definitely not my idea. Besides, almost everyone in our village is there. How could they possibly have time to steal?" Zhang He frowned and shook his head.

Suddenly, a person popped into his mind.

"Wait, I remember now, Zhang Yongyuan didn't come, it must be him!"

Zhang He, leaning on his cane, tapped the ground repeatedly: "It was him too. He was the one who instigated the people of our village to come to you for justice from the very beginning, saying that he accidentally saw you cut off the water supply and that you wanted to kill him after you discovered it."

"Zhang Yongyuan, is that the thief who stole things from our village yesterday?"

"That's right, it's him." Seeing Liu Dexi's worried expression, Zhang He asked cautiously, "Do you have any valuables in your house? Don't worry, the people in our village will compensate you double."

I should have sent someone to guard the house.

"This isn't about the object itself!" Liu Dexi sighed repeatedly. "This house was left to the Immortal Lord by the people of our village, but now it's been ransacked by others... This..."

"Ah?" Zhang He was shocked. How could he not understand that if this residence was reserved for the gods in heaven, even if nothing was lost, the mere fact that it was stolen was serious enough.

Even if they sold the entire village, they still couldn't afford to lose money!

"What should we do?!"

"Damn it, I'll bring him here right now, you can do whatever you want with him!"

Upon hearing this, one of the people from Zhangjia Village who had come along couldn't stand still and ran straight back to the entrance of his village.

Upon seeing the water cube floating in the air, constantly gushing water, he already knew that their village was in the wrong. Not to mention that Liu Dexi not only allowed them to come and collect water at will, but also promised to share some of the fish bestowed upon them by the immortal.

I felt extremely ashamed and didn't know how to face the people of Liujia Village.

Before long, the people from their own village had gone to steal from another village, still to the dwelling of the gods who provided them with water and food.

This is clearly rubbing their village's face into the ground!

How embarrassing!

The other glanced at his departing companion, then at his own village chief, and finally stopped where he was.

"Hey, I'll go to your village. After all, this trouble was caused by people from our village. If I leave too, you won't be able to explain it to the villagers," Zhang He said, gesturing for Liu Dexi to lead the way.

Liu Dexi knew his old friend's character; if he didn't lead the way, the friend would probably walk there on his own.

In addition, this matter really requires the presence of a respected person from Zhangjia Village, otherwise it would be difficult to keep the villagers in line.

"Alright, let's go."

……

"So much food! We won't have to worry about enough for seven days!" Zhang Yongyuan put down the basket on his back and took out the fish from it, placing them on the table.

"One, two, three, four! We'll take out two more for the villagers later, so we won't be afraid when the people from Liu Family Village come!"

Before he could even celebrate, a noise came from outside the door, the footsteps grew louder and louder, and then his door was kicked down.

"Hey, what are you doing? My door!" Zhang Yongyuan shrank back in fear. When he saw the person look at him and then at the fish in his hand, he suddenly realized what was going on.

This is going to be a share of my dirt!

He quickly picked up a large fish and smiled solicitously, "This is a fish I got from Liu Family Village, how about I give you one!"

He should have said something, because once he did, the man got even angrier. He shoved Zhang Yongyuan aside, filled the basket with all the fish, and carried it on his back.

"Two men, take him to Liujia Village!" he shouted to the people standing outside the door.

Upon seeing the fish on the table, the onlookers guessed what had happened.

While they were arguing with the people of Liujia Village, Zhang Yongyuan went to steal things from another village!

Since their village chief didn't come back, he must have been left behind in Liu Family Village!

Before long, two men came out, supporting Zhang Yongyuan, and followed the leader towards Liujia Village.

"It's just fish, right? I don't want it anymore, you can have it all, okay? Just don't send me to Liujia Village."

Zhang Yongyuan kept shouting, which annoyed the leader, who then threw a straight punch at his stomach.

"You've gotten off easy this time! It's one thing to cause trouble on ordinary days, but this time no one can save you."

Zhang Yongyuan cried out in pain and dared not speak again.

Fearing that their village chief would be questioned, they walked quickly and soon arrived at Liujia Village.

The leader gestured for the two men to press Zhang Yongyuan to the ground and said.

"This is the man who stole from your village twice. You can do whatever you want with him! Of course, this time we are in the wrong. If you have any other demands, just say so!"

The people of Liujia Village were filled with hatred when they saw the man, but they dared not go up and beat him.

Raise your head three feet and there is a god.

After all, Bai Xianjun might be watching, and none of them would dare to be the villain, not even a thief.

Seeing this, Zhang He understood immediately. He stepped forward and said, "From now on, Zhang Yongyuan is no longer a member of Zhangjia Village. What do you think of this punishment?"

"No, village chief, you can't do this!" Zhang Yongyuan looked at Zhang He in despair. Seeing his firm expression, which didn't seem like he was joking, Zhang Yongyuan was so frightened that his legs went weak and he fell to the ground.

He simply couldn't survive on this wasteland if he left the village!

This is even more painful than killing him outright.

His face was contorted with grief as he frantically slapped himself, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for mercy: "Village Chief, Second Uncle, I was wrong! Please don't kick me out of the village! I'll never do it again! Please forgive me this time! Beat me up, even just a beating is fine. If all else fails, I'll give up my right hand, okay?"

He tried to crawl to Zhang He to plead for mercy, but was held back by other villagers.

Zhang He's gaze never fell on him; he kept looking at Liu Dexi.

Liu Dexi turned around and saw that the people in his village had all nodded in agreement: "Okay."

"No!!!"

Zhang Yongyuan was filled with remorse and burst into tears. But now, everything was over. From now on, there would be no place for him in Zhangjia Village, and after his death, he would not even be able to be buried in the ancestral graveyard.

He has no home anymore!