Tofu Pass

  The cold rain on a winter day is like weeping and complaining, it's so clingy that it makes people furious. The clothes that were just dried are already dripping with water in no time, and the dampness wrapped around the body makes every move uncomfortable.

  Yun Cong jumped down from the ox cart, leading the ox to the shed, and used a hemp cloth to wipe it dry first. He didn't bother to wipe his own head, which was full of rainwater. It wasn't until he got here that he understood a truth: cows are more important than people. The several women helping in the kitchen assisted Yun Cong in unloading the glutinous rice from the ox cart. One of them saw Yun Cong covered in mud and water and complained, "How can you put the rain-soaked awning on top of the glutinous rice? These grains will be eaten up in a couple of days, it doesn't matter if they get rained on."

  Yun Cong took down a small basket of eggs from the cow cart, smiled and said to the woman: "Don't worry, these are all for people to eat. How can they be seen in water? If they see water, won't they become steamed rice? Everyone is working hard, if they don't eat enough, it will lead to casualties. The other day, there was a little leftover food, so I bought some eggs and made some egg drop soup for everyone to drink, warm up."

  The woman chuckled and said, "You're the one with a solution. In previous years, even coarse rice wasn't enough for everyone to eat, but you managed to make sure everyone had food and dishes. Now you want to make soup too? At this rate, life on the construction site will be like living like a county magistrate."

  Yun Cong let out a wry smile, and had no idea how those officials were supplied. The coarse rice was given in small quantities, but the salted vegetables were piled high, he didn't know what year they were pickled in. A large black vat, the warehouse manager said it wasn't enough, come and take more. Yun Cong glanced at the seal, on which was the mark of the Wu Sheng Army, needless to say this was something discarded from the military.

  No choice, Yunzheng had to exchange salted vegetables and mountain people for coarse rice, and exchange some lard. As long as the mountain people had salt to eat, it was a great thing, where would they go to pick? This made Yunzheng pick up a big bargain, and the more than 100 laborers he was in charge of were very satisfied with their food. No wonder, who can say no to rice and vegetables?

  Mountain people are actually escapees, they hide in the mountains and don't come out, self-sufficient and self-fed. It sounds like a carefree life, but in reality, they are struggling on the edge of life and death every day, fighting against the big mountain, wild beasts, and also bandits in the mountains. After a month of fighting at the foot of the mountain, Yun Zhong didn't see a single elderly mountain dweller; they can't live past thirty years old.

  After drinking a large bowl of Fanzhuang soup, Yun Zheng finally felt a little warmth in his body. The Fanzhuang soup was still taught by himself to these women, only need a wooden potato powder, an egg can make a big pot of soup, and then casually sprinkle some green vegetable sprouts, not only looks good, the taste is also good, just no nutrition, just deceive the mouth.

  The copper gong signaling the end of work rang out, and the laborers emerged one by one from the rainy ground like ghosts, gathering around the fire pit to warm themselves, reluctant to leave. The woman in charge of cooking began to shoo them away with a large ladle.

  "Gather around the fire pit, don't you want to eat anymore? Master Xiao looks at you with pity. Today, he has prepared delicious food for everyone, including chicken eggs. Drink a little more to dispel the cold air."

  The silly Cang Er was almost squeezed out of the shed, and Yun Zheng pulled him to sit behind his broken table, which could barely block the wind. He gave him a large bowl of soup, not particularly treating him well, but with a slightly thicker layer of egg drops on top. There was a lot of soup, and Cang Er drank another bowl, his stomach empty, filled with clear broth. Every time he moved, his belly would rumble loudly, just like a big cow that had just finished drinking water. No one laughed at him; they all looked the same.

  The coarse rice here, Yun Zheng never restricts it, and with two side dishes of pickled vegetables, they can eat a large bowl. Since coming to this world, Yun Zheng found that his appetite has also increased dramatically, a ceramic bowl as big as a human head, eating two bowls is nothing.

  It's been a month since I arrived at the construction site, and Liu Doutou has only appeared three times. Unexpectedly, he came today too. He looked at the laborers' rice bowls, nodded in satisfaction, and then scooped up a spoonful of egg soup from the pot to taste it. His eyes lit up, and he filled a large bowl for himself. Sitting on Yun Zheng's broken table, he drank while saying: "After walking around in circles, only your place looks like a decent place for people to live. Kid, can you do the work of measuring the earthwork? If you can, follow me to measure the earthwork. This job won't let you go unpaid, 50 cents a day."

  Yun Cong smiled and said, "You're going to dig a new ditch, aren't you? I'll do it naturally. Not only will I do it, but I also know that you plan to dig a canal on the mountain. The accumulated water in the fortress on the mountain can't be drained out. Now it's winter, and this little rain has already caused flooding. If we wait until the heavy rains of spring and summer, haha, there will be excitement on the mountain. Who knows, maybe all our hard work this winter will be washed away by the rain."

  Liu Da Tou put down the bowl in his hand, patted Yun Zheng's head with a loud slap and laughed: "You're so clever, grandma! A scholar should be like you. Quickly think of a way to save money, this is extra work, and we won't get paid for it. If you come up with something, I'll treat you."

  "Actually, the water accumulated on the mountain doesn't need to be cleared away. The northern slope of Dou Sha Guan has only this one mountain peak, and its terrain is steep and easy to defend but hard to attack, which is why the superiors want to build a fortress here, forming a mutually supportive defense with Dou Sha Guan. However, there's a lack of water on the mountain, which means that this mountain peak can't be defended for long. If I were the enemy, under circumstances where my military strength allows it, I would surround this mountain and not need to wait too long - ten days would be enough, and this mountain would collapse without a fight."

  Liu Dutou raised Yun Zheng's face and said with a playful smile: "I didn't expect that we still have a military strategist here, you'd better say something, how to solve this problem, let old Liu learn from it."

  Yun Cong said, slapping the table like Mr. Shu: "The cellar for storing water, if you dig a canal, this canal will not be less than three miles long. At the current rate, you'll need at least a month. If you make use of that flood pool on the mountain, there won't be this worry. In three to five days, it can be cleared out. When it rains heavily, the rainwater will flow into the flood pool, and you don't have to worry about the rainwater rushing into the lower fortress."

  "Nonsense, where did the mountain come from with a pool? If we rebuild the pool, I'd rather dig a ditch. At least we don't have to chisel stone to pave the pool. I thought you had some good ideas, but it's just a waste of money. The commander at Dou Sha Guan hasn't even spoken up, what are we worried about? Doing our own job well is the most important thing." Liu Du Tou was slightly disappointed.

  Yun Zheng slammed his head against the table, making a loud banging sound. Liu Du grabbed Yun Zheng's collar and lifted him up, saying: "Speak properly, what's wrong with you?"

  "Oh heavens, the Bean Sauce Border has been guarding the five-foot path for over a thousand years, through Qin and Han, Three Kingdoms, Two Jins, Tang... so many years. Zhuge Liang even stationed troops here. How could all those famous ministers and brave generals not know how to utilize this mountain head? The cliff inscription of Yuan Zhen from the Tang Dynasty is right by the road, clearly writing that on top of this mountain there was a green stone pool, where he himself had washed his feet. I just don't believe it, after all these years, those stones would turn into soil."