Dressed as a farmer's widow, she brought her daughter to stock up on food and reached the top

So, at Xiuying's suggestion, the village quickly formulated detailed water use rules and arranged special personnel to register and guard the well water.

Everyone carefully guarded this precious well water.

During this dry season, Futian Village has two water sources, one is the newly dug well water, and the other is the mountain spring water flowing from the back mountain.

……

At night, the moonlight was like water, spreading across Xiuying's yard. Xiuying sat on a small stool, surrounded by a group of children, earnestly telling them the story of the twenty solar terms.

"Children, these twenty solar terms are the wisdom left by our ancestors. Each solar term has its special meaning..." Xiuying's voice was soft and gentle.

The children listened attentively, staring at Xiuying without blinking.

After telling the story, Xiuying fell into deep thought. Her thoughts followed the story and she thought of the hail that would occur in many mountainous areas after the severe drought. She frowned slightly, and her eyes were full of worry.

"Mom, what are you thinking about?" asked the little old man curiously.

Xiuying sighed softly and said, "Mudan, I'm thinking that after this severe drought, some places might experience hail, which would be another disaster."

The children looked at her with confusion.

Xiuying continued, "We must cherish the days when we have water, but we must also learn to plan ahead so that if a disaster strikes, we will be able to cope."

Xiuying gazed at the bright moon in the night sky, her mind racing. She reflected on the modern world, filled with tall buildings, incredibly sturdy and built to withstand all kinds of weather.

But now, here, looking around, there are only dilapidated thatched huts and mud houses, and the best houses have only some tiles on the roof. If there is a hailstorm, how can these fragile houses withstand it? Her brows frowned even more tightly, worried.

Those thatched houses would probably be smashed to pieces, and the adobe houses might even collapse. Her heart sank at the thought. Where would the villagers go to live? How would they rebuild their homes?

Moreover, if the hailstorm destroys the crops, all the hard work of this year will be wasted. The more Xiuying thought about it, the more anxious she became. She sighed deeply and said, "No, I have to think of a way to see if I can make some preparations in advance to minimize the losses."

The next morning, at daybreak, Xiuying hurried out to the village chief's house, her steps hurried and her expression anxious.

When she arrived at the village chief's house, Xiuying didn't even have time to catch her breath and raised her hand to knock on the door.

The "bang bang bang" knocking sounds on the door seemed particularly loud in the quiet morning.

After a while, Wang Shufen opened the door sleepily. Seeing Xiuying, she asked in confusion, "Xiuying, what's going on so early?"

Xiuying said anxiously, "Sister Shufen, I thought about it all night last night. We might have hailstorms coming here. We have to prepare in advance!"

Wang Shufen sobered up a bit when she heard this. She hurriedly let Xiuying into the main room and said, "Wait for me to call Dad."

Wang Shufen called the village chief to the main hall, and quickly brewed a pot of tea for Xiuying. She said warmly, "Xiuying, come here, have some tea first, and then talk slowly."

Xiuying didn't hesitate. She picked up the teacup and took a sip, then eagerly told the village chief her guess that there would be hail.

Her expression was solemn, her gaze firm. "Village Chief, last night I kept thinking, 'After this drought, there's a high probability of hail.' Have you ever thought about this before?"

The village chief listened, his brows gradually furrowed, and he nodded thoughtfully.

Xiuying continued, "Most of the houses in our village are not sturdy. If hail really hits, the damage will be huge. And the crops in the fields are about to be harvested, and we can't let them be destroyed by hail."

The village chief, hands behind his back, paced back and forth in the main hall, saying worriedly, "Xiuying, you're right, but what can we do to prepare?"

Xiuying put down her teacup and said seriously, "Village Chief, I think we should first move the elderly, weak, and sick in the village to a safe place, then organize people to reinforce the houses and do as much protection as possible. And what about the crops? Can we find a way to build some simple sheds to protect them?"

The village chief stopped and looked at Xiuying with approval. "Xiuying, you've thought this through. Okay, let's gather everyone to discuss this."

The village chief brought his eldest son Li Gang to the old locust tree. Li Gang held a gong in his hand and struck it "clang clang clang".

The crisp and rapid sound of the gong broke the tranquility of the village and startled a flock of flying birds.

The villagers came out of their homes and gathered around the old locust tree, whispering to each other, not knowing what had happened.

Xiuying followed closely behind, her face full of seriousness and anxiety.

The village chief stood on the stone platform under the old locust tree and said loudly: "Fellow villagers, please be quiet and listen to me!" The villagers gradually quieted down and their eyes turned to the village chief.

"Xiuying told me that there may be hail after the drought, so we have to prepare in advance!" The village chief's voice echoed in the village.

There was a sudden commotion in the crowd and everyone started talking.

"What? Hail? What should we do?"

"How did Xiuying know?"

"Why do you care so much? Xiuying said it's time to go down, so go down."

The village chief raised his hand to signal for silence and continued, "No matter what, we'd rather believe it than not. Everyone, listen to my instructions!"

The villagers fell silent, all looking towards the village chief, awaiting his next instructions. Beneath the old locust tree, the atmosphere was tense and solemn.

Tian Guilan was sleeping soundly when Zhao Cunliang pushed her out in a hurry.

She was sleepy, her hair was messy, and she mumbled, "What are you doing so early in the morning?"

When she heard that it was Xiuying again who suggested the possibility of hail, she immediately became angry and started cursing.

She put her hands on her hips and shouted at the top of her voice, "It's Xiuying again, wondering where the hail came from all the time! She's just spreading rumors!"

The people around her looked at her strangely when they heard her yelling.

Aunt Li quickly tugged at her clothes and yelled, "Keep your voice down and stop making a fuss."

Tian Guilan, however, persisted, her voice rising even higher: "I told you, what does she know? She just does whatever she wants."

Seeing this, the village chief shouted, "Tian Guilan, stop making trouble! Xiuying is doing this for everyone's good. Instead of wasting time, she should think about how to deal with this."

Tian Guilan finally shut up, but she still looked unconvinced. Some people in the crowd began to accuse Tian Guilan of being unreasonable, and the scene was in chaos.

Zhou Dazhu, who was also still half asleep, cursed, "Xiuying is so troublesome. Where did all the hail come from? She just does whatever she wants. It's pure torture!"