The emotions that run deep in our blood can sometimes be just so incomprehensible!

"You can't say that entirely," Village Chief Huang laughed. "In the past, corvée labor was really tough. It was hard to even get a sip of hot water. We could eat our fill, but there was hardly any oil or fat in the food. If the journey was too far, we couldn't go home. We could only make do for a night in a dilapidated temple. Day after day, we had no choice but to endure it ourselves. If we were all dead, who would care about others?"

"Right now, even though it's tiring, at least I'm alive, so I can think about other things."

After saying this, Village Chief Huang sighed. He had only recently been exempted from corvée labor. In his eyes, if the official road hadn't been built, this year's corvée labor would have been much easier. Even with the official road being built, it was still better than before.

Back then, they outlived two people and they died.

Watching familiar clansmen lose their lives day by day, the thought of it is terrifying.

This is why he valued scholars so much. Only by studying and taking the imperial examinations could one have a slight chance of avoiding year after year of forced labor and thus avoid losing lives.

This year, Jiang Nuan's actions gave him a glimmer of hope. Although there was still corvée labor, they could try their best to avoid such meaningless sacrifices through their own efforts.

They are not afraid of hardship; these farmers themselves have been steeped in bitterness.

They are not afraid of being tired; what farmers are most generous with is their strength.

As long as they leave a way out, that's enough!

Jiang Nuan didn't understand Village Chief Huang's humble thoughts, and she felt very sad because of his self-deprecation.

"Big brother," Jiang Nuan asked cautiously, "has anyone in our village really died because of forced labor?"

“Yes,” Village Chief Huang nodded gently, “About seven or eight years ago, two of them died. Since then, our village has had a customary rule that unless there is really no one else in the family, only the young and strong juniors are allowed to perform corvée labor.”

Young people have abundant energy and blood, making them less prone to illness and faster to recover. Because of this, our village hasn't had any major incidents for many years.

However, every parent feels sorry for their child, and Village Chief Huang felt that he would rather work himself than let his son suffer here.

"Brother, were those two people who had the accident because they were sick?"

"Yes, it wasn't as good as it is now back then. We didn't bribe the foremen, so we could only work hard every day. If we were even a little slow, we would be whipped. We couldn't stop even when it rained. Those who were better off could wear oilcloth, while those who were worse off could only wear straw hats. The government wouldn't provide medical treatment, and we couldn't delay our corvée labor. Eventually, we couldn't get treatment."

Because of this, the village chief's resentment towards the clan chief never subsided. If he hadn't been so reluctant to spend money, this tragedy wouldn't have happened.

After a pause, Village Chief Huang frowned. "Ya Ya, don't think I'm just talking big. Just wait and see, this year's corvée labor will definitely cost several lives."

“I do believe you,” Jiang Nuan said, her brows still furrowed. “I’m thinking about whether I should go to a doctor to get some medicine to strengthen their bodies and cook a pot for them to drink every day.”

“No need, these lads are tough as nails, not as delicate as you think,” Village Chief Huang waved his hand. “Besides, now that we’re here, with our help, repairing the official road won’t be as difficult as before.”

"Let's buy some," Jiang Nuan said thoughtfully, "It won't do any harm anyway."

She hadn't thought about this at all; she had only prepared some medicine for treating colds, and since no one had been sick recently, she had completely forgotten about it.