In the spring of 1974, the western land fell into a drought. Water was necessary to save the wheat seedlings that were gradually withering. Only when the wheat is harvested can the people's lives be carried on. For this reason, Xiyang Village, located at the foot of Lishan Mountain, plans to dig a well to save itself.

The story of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses begins here. The first person to discover the terracotta warriors and horses was a farmer from Xiyang Village. He was only rewarded 1.3 cents. Instead of getting much benefit from it, he fell into more than 20 years of misfortune. What is the story behind this?

"Wa Ye" appeared in the well

After Xiyang Village decided to dig a well, Yang Peiyan, the captain of the production team, smoked dry cigarettes and walked around the village land again and again. , he wanted to find a good place to dig a well.

Seeing that the sun was about to set, Yang Peiyan stopped, threw away the cigarette butt, stamped his feet, then picked up the hoe and drew an irregular circle on the ground. Yang Peiyan said to the people accompanying him: Fight here!

The next morning, a number of strong laborers headed by Yang Zhifa came to the place where the circle was drawn with well-digging tools. According to the plan, Yang Zhifa and the others will build a large-diameter well to completely solve the current situation of relying on the sky for food.

Although the ground is covered with gravel, sometimes sparks will fly when you drop the hoe. However, no matter how great the difficulty is, it cannot stop the farmers who are forced into desperate situation by drought. After the sand and gravel were cleared, the progress of digging the well was obviously faster.

At noon, the well had been dug nearly one meter, but Yang Zhifa discovered how the soil below had become hard. Yang Zhifa picked up the hoe and hit it hard. Unexpectedly, sparks appeared.

Yang Zhifa said: Have we dug into the brick kiln?

The people traveling with us replied: I heard the old man say that there used to be many earthen kilns in our area, and we might have encountered them.

Yang Zhifa changed his pickaxe, and after a lot of effort, he finally penetrated the soil layer. After passing through that layer of red soil, the progress of the project has improved a lot.

In less than a week, Yang Zhifa and the others dug a large well with a diameter of 4 meters and a depth of 4 meters underground. They were only one step away from the Terracotta Warriors and Horses that shocked the world.

On March 29, 1974, Yang Zhifa, who was working in the well, suddenly shouted: Ah, Mr. Wa!

"Wa Ye" is a local dialect, a respectful name for clay statues of gods. It is taboo for well diggers to dig out "Wa Ye". Yang Zhifa spit hard, then put "Wa Ye" into the frame and asked someone to carry it up.

The people above the well cleaned up the soil on the "tile god" and found that it was a pottery human head. The image was not that of a folk god, and it looked a bit scary.

At this time, people said: This must not be a brick and tile kiln, otherwise where did the "tile master" come from? It might be a temple stall.

Farmers are somewhat superstitious, and they are a little scared when they hear it is a temple. At this time, the captain of the production team said: No matter it is a brick kiln or a temple, we must continue to dig in order to find water. This is the business.

The most important thing is to survive, and only by finding water can you survive. People once again focused their efforts on digging wells. Although pottery figurines continued to be unearthed, no one made a fuss anymore.

The first person to discover the terracotta warriors and horses

After working in the evening, driven by curiosity, Yang Zhifa took a terracotta warrior head home and decided to study what kind of god it was.

Yang Zhifa’s wife is a primary school teacher and is relatively literate. When she saw the pottery head, she thought it was not a statue of a god, but probably a cultural relic.

Under the persuasion of his wife, Yang Zhifa planned to find someone who knew how to ask. At that time, Fang Shumin, the water conservator of Lintong County, was in Xiyang Village to investigate the local water resources situation.

In Yang Zhifa's view, Fang Shumin is a great intellectual, and he might know what this "Wa Ye" is? Yang Zhifa really found the right person. Fang Shumin and the cadres of the county cultural center are good friends, and he learned a lot about cultural relics from his friends.

After seeing the pottery figurines brought by Yang Zhifa, Fang Shumin immediately realized that there was probably a ruins under the well, and he was not sure what it was.

For this reason, Fang Shumin approached Yang Peiyan and asked him to stop working for a day. The next day, three people from the county cultural center came to check out the excavated pottery figurines. They were shocked on the spot. After preliminary inference, these pottery figurines are probably from the Qin Dynasty.

In the end, the staff of the cultural center collected all the scattered pottery figurines and pottery fragments, and told Yang Peiyan: This is a national treasure of great cultural value. The well cannot be dug anymore, and the site must be protected.

Later, after excavation by authoritative experts, eight thousand terracotta warriors and horses were finally unearthed. In order to commend the members of Xiyang Village, the County Cultural Center awarded the village 30 yuan.

Yang Peiyan decided to give each person 5 points of work as a reward. Yang Zhifa and others were very satisfied with this, because at that time, 5 points of work was equivalent to 1.3 cents, which was considered a windfall.

In addition to receiving awards, Yang Zhifa also received an honorary title, that is, "the first person to discover the Terracotta Warriors and Horses."

Having been unlucky for more than 20 years

Yang Zhifa did not become rich because of the discovery of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses. Instead, he was unlucky for more than 20 years. After experts excavated the Terracotta Warriors and Horses, they planned to build the Qin Shihuang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum the next year. Xiyang Village was included in the plan and could only be relocated collectively.

At the beginning, when the terracotta warriors and horses were discovered in Xiyang Village, the villagers felt quite proud. Many people praised Yang Zhifa as "Yang Yizhen" for being able to dig out national treasures with just a stick of his head.

But when Xiyang Village was about to move collectively and leave their hometown where they were born and raised, the villagers became angry. They cursed Yang Zhifa for "selling his ancestors just because of 30 yuan."

Faced with the accusations from the villagers, Yang Zhifa had difficulty in defending himself. He had no choice but to admit that he was unlucky. With so many people digging wells, why was he the first to dig out pottery figurines?

Since 1975, Yang Zhifa has lived in isolation and minimized contact with the villagers. Such days passed for more than 20 years, until the arrival of a person saved Yang Zhifa from his misfortune. This person was Clinton.

Monthly allowance of 8,000 yuan

In 1998, Clinton visited China. When he came to the Qin Shihuang Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum, he was immediately attracted by the magnificent scene. Clinton unexpectedly asked: Who was the first person to discover the terracotta warriors and horses? He is simply a hero.

The venue staff quickly replied: It’s a farmer, his name is Yang Zhifa.

Clinton then asked if he could meet Yang Zhifa and express his respect to him. The President of the United States has said this, so naturally a meeting was arranged for him.

Yang Zhifa has been unlucky for more than 20 years, and finally feels proud. After Clinton met him, he even asked Yang Zhifa to give him an autograph, just like a fan.

But Yang Zhifa couldn’t write at all, so he had to draw three circles instead. Clinton said humorously: You are one of the two old people in China who are best at drawing circles.

Clinton’s arrival brought Yang Zhifa into the spotlight again. To this end, the museum arranged for a calligrapher to personally teach Yang Zhifa how to practice his signature. The local authorities also appointed him as the honorary director of the museum, and granted him a special allowance of 8,000 yuan every month.

Conclusion

After Yang Zhifa became famous, he lived a good life and lived a peaceful old age, which is really enviable. Later, many people in Xiyang Village claimed that they were the "first person to discover the Terracotta Warriors and Horses". After all, there were many people who dug the well together.

But Yang Zhifa is officially recognized as the "first person". He has been unlucky for more than 20 years for this title. Now he has worked hard and enjoyed special allowances and lived a good life, which is what he deserves.