Lu Xiu'er followed the red lotus, turned around step by step, walked out of the second hall, and walked towards the inner office. She wanted to stay by Su Hao's side all the time, but the county magistrate spoke, even if she disobeyed, besides, Su Hao didn't have the slightest intention of speaking for her, she could only be at the mercy of others.

Watching Lu Xiu'er walk away, Su Hao smiled and said to Han Wen: "My lord, my sister has been staying in the countryside and has never seen much of the world, but it makes the adults and the master laugh." ”

"Where is it, Ling Mei is innocent, and the county likes it at a glance." Han Wen said with a smile, he is also a person with a daughter, so speaking like this will not make Su Hao think of inappropriate aspects.

"Brother Su, please take a seat." Fang Mengjin greeted from the side.

"Yes, yes, sit down and talk." Han Wen also said.

Although Han Wen and Fang Mengjin showed the appearance of being a virtuous person, Su Hao was just a talent after all, and of course he was not qualified to sit on an equal footing with the magistrate, so he could only sit on both sides. Han Wen returned to the main seat, Fang Mengjin called the official to pour tea for everyone, and then sat opposite Su Hao and began to talk.

When the conversation began, it was natural to greet each other first. Han Wen asked Su Hao's age and family background, and cared about his reading situation, and then sighed: "This is really a talented man from a poor family, Su Hao lost his father when he was young, and his family was poor, but he can become such a great talent, and he can be a model for scholars in the world." ”

"Your Excellency has won the prize." Su Hao said, "How dare these weak talents of students be praised by adults so absurdly." ”

"Su Hao, listening to Zheng Chun, you pointed out four wells for him, and water was pumped out of each well, and the amount of water was exactly the same as your estimate, can this matter be taken seriously?" Fang Mengjin finally got to the point.

Su Hao nodded and said, "What Zheng Chun said is the truth. The students were worried about the drought and dared to choose a few wells, but they were lucky to choose all of them correctly. ”

"This kind of thing can't be done by luck." Fang Mengjin smiled slightly and said, "Su Hao, do you know how many abandoned wells have to be drilled on average in this county to find a good well?" ”

"The students don't know." Su Hao replied.

Fang Mengjin said: "Almost every three waste wells can produce a good well. In your Zhegui Township, the situation is even worse, before you, Zheng Chun drilled a total of 15 wells, each of which was an abandoned well. And the several wells you are referring to, each of them is a good well, and the difference between them may not only be explained by the word luck, right? ”

Su Hao also laughed, he said that he was lucky, of course he didn't expect this statement to fool the past, it was just a modest statement. Since he agreed to come to see Han Wen, he naturally planned to show his talent in finding water, but he didn't plan to learn from Lei Feng to do good deeds, and asked him to help the county government find water, and he would definitely not do it if he didn't give him some compensation.

"I don't know the county lord and Master Fang, the student has indeed learned some aspects of well exploration. Although I don't dare to say that it is foolproof, it is more accurate than that Chen Shenba, and the student is still sure. Su Hao said.

"Oh? Ask Su Xiu to learn the art of well surveying from whom? Han Wen asked curiously.

Su Hao said: "The art of well surveying that students learn is not my Chinese knowledge, but the way of learning things in Fanbang, which I learned from a Buddhist missionary. ”

The word Gewu, from the Book of Rites, was used to refer to Western physics by the end of the Qing Dynasty. Su Hao's geology is also based on physics, so there is nothing wrong with claiming to be the way of things.

At that time, Europeans had already begun to come to China one after another. The Europeans who came to China were nothing more than two identities, one as a merchant and the other as a missionary. Among them, European merchants were only active in some coastal ports, while missionaries were not limited by geography and traveled around the country to preach.

Two years ago, there was a European missionary from an unknown country passing through Fengcheng, and Su Hao happened to be in the county seat to ask the gentleman of the academy for scriptures, and he also saw that missionary on the street. Of course, it was impossible for Su Hao at that time to ask the missionaries for anything, and even if they really wanted to teach him some physics, chemistry and other knowledge, he would probably refuse it as a "kit kat and obscenity".

The person who inadvertently glanced at it at that time happened to be borrowed by Su Hao as a shield now. He knew that if he wanted to help the government in the future, his scientific and technological knowledge in later generations would definitely be revealed. This knowledge cannot be attributed to any ancient fragments, nor can it be said that it was given by the great immortals in dreams, and it is most appropriate to push it to Western missionaries. If you have the ability, you can go to Europe to study it.

"Brother Su's knowledge is actually learned from the Yi people, which is really incredible." Fang Mengjin was surprised, "How is this method of digging wells different from my Ming Feng Shui master, can Brother Su explain a thing or two?" ”

Su Hao nodded and said, "This truth is quite simple to say. Westerners believe that the place we are in is a huge sphere called the Earth. The earth is made up of layers of rocks. Over the years, these rocks have folded, so that mountains and deep valleys have appeared on the earth. ”

"Where we live is a ball? It's ridiculous. Fang Mengjin commented softly.

"This earthly theory is indeed bizarre. However, the rock that Su Xiucai said was folded, and this kind of situation has been seen in this county. Han Wen nodded and said.

Su Hao didn't bother to explain the problem of the earth to the two ancients, this topic was not something that could be clarified in a day or two. In fact, Magellan's circumnavigation of the world was completed 70 years ago, but China at that time refused to accept Western doctrines, so the concept of the earth is still a fallacy even in the minds of Korean and other scholars.

What Su Hao wants to say is the problem of the folds of the rocks, because the distribution of shallow groundwater is related to this problem. With Han Wen's consent, he took a piece of paper, drew a schematic diagram on the paper with a brush, explained to Han Wen and Fang Mengjin what kind of structure belongs to the water storage structure, and then combined with his own practice of surveying well locations in Zhegui Township, he gave a general overview of the survey method.

"I see."

This question is not too complicated, Han Wen and Fang Mengjin are both people who read poetry and books, and their IQs are quite high, and Su Hao himself explained it very well, so the two of them understood it all at once.

"It seems that this method is also a bit ingenious. However, it is necessary to see that the oblique and anticline that Su Xiucai said are far beyond the reach of people, right? Su Xiucai only learned from the Nayi people for a few days, and he had such an experience, which was really talented. Fang Mengjin exclaimed.

Han Wen said: "Su Hao, are you willing to teach this method to the people of our county, so that you can make the matter of digging wells in our county twice the result with half the effort, which is also a major event related to the livelihood of the people in the county." ”

Su Hao nodded and said, "The county magistrate has an order, how dare the students disobey?" However, I have only learned a little from the Nayi people, and if I teach it to others, I am afraid that the people who learn will get a discount. Besides, this method of surveying the terrain lies in continuous comprehension, and in a hurry, it may be difficult for others to master this skill. ”

"My lord, I think what Su Hao said is reasonable. I just listened to Su Hao explain the structure of this rock formation, and I understand the reason, but if I ask myself, if I want to guess the direction of the rock formation based on just a few valleys, I am afraid it will not be possible. Nowadays, the matter of drilling wells cannot be delayed, which makes it not too late for Su Hao to teach his skills to others, or wait until the drought is lifted. Fang Mengjin said what he wanted to say for Su Hao. In his mind, Su Hao has such a technique, which can also be used to settle down, let him easily teach this technique to others, I'm afraid he is still a little reluctant.

Han Wen also understood what Fang Mengjin meant, and he said with a smile: "What the master said is extremely true, but I am too anxious. Su Hao, since you think that others will not be able to learn your skills for a while, are you willing to be hired by this county to go to various townships to guide and dig wells? ”

"This ......" Su Hao deliberately sank for a moment and said: "The matter of digging a well is related to the fathers and elders of the county, and the students should not shirk it." However, there are only widowed mothers and little sisters in the students' families, and the fields and farms cannot be abandoned for a day, if I am not at home, I am afraid that I will ......."

"Hey, it's a trivial matter, how can the magistrate make it difficult for you?" Fang Mengjin took over Su Hao's words and said, "Since the county government hired you to do things, naturally you will not be treated badly in terms of remuneration." With all this reward, you can hire tenants to farm for your family, how can you let the old lady and Ling Mei do the work? ”

Han Wen said: "Su Hao, you are a talented and learned person, it is really a waste to do those rough jobs in the fields." I want to hire you as an errand boy in the county government to dig wells, although the salary is meager, it is enough for you to support your mother and sister, what do you think? ”

"This matter is too serious, and the students dare not agree immediately." Su Hao deliberately pretended to be embarrassed.