After countless of years, the wastelands become cultivated and large oceans receded into seas. The human population expanded, and the aforementioned mountain weathered into a knoll. In fact, many previously isolated areas have worn down into land which is suitable for human population. What kind of story would this mysterious ring bring? Zhang Xiaohua had a face as though he felt blessed by the gods, because right now, his eyes were firmly set upon the farmland before him as though it was a succulent piece of five-spice meat.
Instead of calling it a farmland, it would be more appropriate to call this land as wasteland in the hills, because it was situated in the middle of a knoll where the gradient of the slope in this small area was not too steep. However, this piece of land was the result of the precious efforts by Zhang Xiaohua father over the past two months.
Even though land was abundant in this area, not much of it could be used to cultivate crops. Hence, everyone is always thinking of finding good land that can be used to produce grains. Most people from the village would choose to find land closer to the river, but perhaps because Zhang Xiaohua’s family was too poor to appease the elders, they had no choice but to choose a piece of land that is so far away.
The village that Zhang Xiaohua lived in was named Guo. Its total area consists of approximately 4 li of even ground which was sandwiched between the mountains. The mountains were not tall; it would be more accurate to call them hillocks. A large river flowed across the village, and on the river was a small bridge that connected the roads. There were approximately forty-plus households in the Guo village, with half of them surnamed Guo and actually belonging to a small family clan situated at the center of the village. The village people are mostly simple yet realistic people, so most of the important village matters were decided by the Guo elders. Even though everyone is a member of the village, when it comes to petty matters that require arbitration, the Guo elders would mostly side with those who are surnamed Guo. The best locations in the village have also been taken by the Guo households. Nevertheless, village life was simple and peaceful, there was never a matter that could not be resolved so everyone was contented with the way things were.