"I didn't go deep into the mountains. This wild boar got lost. Don't worry, it's getting dark, and I'm starving."

I heard her say she was hungry.

Ye Lan had no choice but to give up asking questions. She quickly took the pork fat, washed it with water, and then started rendering the oil.

Lin Muyan and Lin Yu also readily agreed to start a fire.

Lin Yan took out a separate pot and scooped out the rice to keep it warm.

Pork belly alone is too greasy.

It's not suitable for people like them who are constantly hungry.

Lin Yan then chopped a lot of potatoes and put them in with the meat, simmering them over medium heat until the sauce thickened.

Ye Lan has already rendered two large basins of lard.

Lin Yan tasted the pork cracklings.

Mmm, it smells delicious!

Looks like we can use the time to make dumplings tomorrow.

Because she added potatoes, she didn't reduce the broth completely.

After the fragrant braised pork was served, Ye Lan's lard was also rendered.

She stir-fried some greens again.

Fortunately, the rice remained warm on the stove and could be eaten without reheating.

Four pounds of pork belly and potatoes were cooked into a whole big pot.

Lin Yan filled a large bowl and had Lin Muyan take it to the village head's house so they could taste her cooking.

She then filled a large basin with rice, put it in a basket, and asked Ye Lan to deliver it to the Xie family next door.

I heard that the Xie family members are all emaciated and pale, probably because they often went hungry on their way to exile.

Perhaps it's because we're both soldiers.

She felt that the families of fallen soldiers should not have such a tragic end.

At the dinner table, it was the first time the family of four had eaten braised pork.

Sugar was expensive in ancient times, and making this dish required a lot of sugar, so only the wealthy could afford it.

"Big sister, this braised pork is so delicious! I feel like I'm dreaming these past few days, eating so much meat every day."

She's only ten years old.

Even though Lin Muyan is usually very composed, he couldn't resist the temptation of delicious food!

I ate piece after piece of braised pork...

Ye Lan has only eaten two pieces so far, and has only been eating vegetables.

Lin Yan couldn't stand it, so she took the bowl from her and put several pieces of braised pork in it.

"Daughter, don't put so much on your plate, Mom can't finish it."

She didn't believe that. How could she work so much every day without eating meat?

Ye Lan wanted to put the meat back in the bowl.

But then she saw the three children make the same move, their hands getting stuck on their rice bowls, leaving her with no choice but to finish the meat.

After the family of four finished their delicious braised pork, a gong suddenly rang out in the center of the village!

Ye Lan didn't have time to wash the dishes. After telling her two children not to open the door to strangers, she hurriedly left with her daughter.

"You all go to sleep first, I'll go check on things."

When the two arrived at the haystack in the center of the village, it was already surrounded by villagers.

They looked at the village headman standing on the high place and began to shout:

"Village head, what do you need me for so late?"

Seeing that almost everyone had arrived, the village headman struck the gong again:

"Quiet! Quiet! Is everyone here? We are short of soldiers and the court needs money to support the army. So we have decided that each household should pay 300 cash in taxes per person. If you don't have money, you can send someone. If one person joins the army, the whole family is exempt from taxes! People aged seven to fifteen pay half, and those over fifteen pay the full amount. The county government will send someone to collect the taxes before noon tomorrow."

"300 coins! Where are we going to get that much money? Isn't the imperial court trying to kill us?"

"Good heavens! How are people supposed to live like this?!"

For a moment, the cries of despair drowned out the sound of the village head's gong.

Families with many children were so upset that they fainted from crying.

Liu even sat on the ground and started throwing a tantrum:

"God, just let this old woman die."

It's all that fool's fault. Otherwise, with twenty taels of silver in hand, we wouldn't have to worry about this.

Feeling a malicious gaze behind her, Lin Yan turned around and saw Liu staring at her.

She suddenly raised her fist...

When Liu saw her like this, she shrank back in fear!

After all, she still hurts from all those blows she took!

When her son comes back from town, she's going to beat that little bitch to death!

Ye Lan was equally distressed and overwhelmed.

The family of five had to pay a little over one tael of silver.

And then there's her maternal family, her younger brother and sister-in-law, plus several children, who would cost nearly three liang (approximately 150 grams).

Where would I get so much money?

The whole village was shrouded in sorrow.

Lin Yan felt bad too, as most of the villagers were honest and simple farmers.

You can only earn that little money in a year.

After paying taxes each year, there's basically no money left, and it's even difficult to have enough to eat.

Now the imperial court is going to increase taxes even further, clearly pushing them to the brink of despair.

No wonder there have been so many peasant uprisings throughout history...

No matter the era, it is always the ordinary people who suffer in war.

The wealthy and nobles continued their life of feasting and revelry.

The emperor is incompetent and mediocre, and the Great Qi Dynasty is now beset by internal and external troubles.

With the northern barbarians on the outside and the vassal kings on the inside stirring up trouble, the people were having a hard time.

Her wild boar solved her immediate problem, but the other villagers weren't so lucky.

Even after returning home, Ye Lan's brow remained furrowed.

Lin Yan knew she was probably worried about her maternal grandmother's family, so she took out four taels and two mace of silver from her bosom and handed it to her:

"Mother, give these three taels of silver to Grandma to pay her taxes tomorrow morning. Consider the rest as my filial piety to them. Take this one tael and two qian to Lizheng's house to pay his taxes. I'll go to the back mountain tomorrow morning to dig up some medicinal herbs to sell."

With more than four taels of silver in her hand, Ye Lan felt a heavy weight in her palm.

This money was earned by my daughter risking her life to hunt a wild boar.

She just couldn't use it no matter what she did.

This money should not be used to help her family.

“Daughter, take this money back. How could your mother accept your money? Keep it for yourself. Your mother and grandmother should have some extra money. Don’t worry.”

"Mom, please accept it. Grandma has taken such good care of our family all these years. What is this little bit of money? If you don't accept it, I'll get angry."

Ye Lan had no choice but to accept it, her heart filled with emotion that left her speechless, and her eyes silently reddened.

My daughter finally recovered from her mental retardation, but now she has to worry about making money for the family.

It's all her fault for being such a useless mother...

Other girls of that age in town are dressed up in their finest clothes.

It's one thing for my daughter to be silly in the past.

Now that things are better, I'm toiling day and night.

She always wore drab, coarse linen clothes and never wore any jewelry.

She quietly wiped away the tears streaming from the corners of her eyes and solemnly stuffed the silver into her inner pocket.

No one in the village slept well that night.

The two children slept in the east room with Ye Lan.

Lin Yan slept alone in the west room.

She tossed and turned for a long time before finally falling asleep.

suddenly!

That sticky, snake-like feeling from last night has returned!

She suddenly opened her eyes!

A strikingly handsome face suddenly loomed large in front of her!

Those deep, dark eyes, as unfathomable as an ancient well, were bloodshot and fixed on her like a wild beast eyeing its prey!

A bloodthirsty smile curled at the corners of his lips.

Like a vengeful ghost from hell coming to claim her life, a fierce murderous intent flashed in his eyes!

"It's you?!"