Chapter 247 Bitten by a Rat 1

Sanni, however, looked completely at ease, saying that her younger sister was a fairy and of course couldn't do any work.

*

After finishing their meal, when they went to work in the fields, they found that the joy of yesterday's grain distribution had vanished from every household; everyone was sighing and lamenting.

Because among all the communes under several towns, the three neighboring communes had the best harvests, many relatives came to their door to borrow grain, which made them very embarrassed.

If we don't lend the money, it's a matter of face and personal relationships. But if we lend to one family, another will come along. If we keep going like this, we might not even have enough food for our own family.

Moreover, several households have already given up and lent out a considerable amount of their grain.

Zhao Mancang frowned as he looked at them, afraid that they might soften their hearts and lend out all their grain.

So they arranged for us to have a meeting at the commune dam after lunch.

He stood on the stage, holding a megaphone, and said with a serious expression, "I've called everyone here today mainly to talk about lending grain. I know that some of you have already lent out a lot of grain, and this spirit of mutual help is something we should all learn from. But I want to remind you today that the extent of grain damage this year is not as serious as you think."

Upon hearing his last sentence, the commune members, who had been looking worried, immediately perked up their ears, eager to hear what the situation was like in other communes.

The relatives who came to borrow grain all complained that their commune's harvest was bad and people were starving, but they didn't know exactly why it was bad, so they didn't know whether they should lend the grain or not.

If it's truly life-saving food, refusing to lend it would be tantamount to watching someone die!

Seeing this, Zhao Mancang paused for a moment, then continued, "The damage this time is quite severe, only affecting the communes under the two neighboring towns. But at least half of last year's harvest is still achieved. As long as we pay less grain tax this year, we can still eat until we're half full and won't starve. More importantly, the first harvest has only been completed so far, and the second harvest will be coming soon. Although the yield won't be as high as the first harvest, it will still be a considerable amount of grain. I'm telling you all this today so that you can carefully consider your own circumstances before deciding whether to lend grain."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the commune showed obvious signs of relief.

Yes, back then, all they cared about was their meager grain reserves and the relatives who would come to borrow grain from time to time.

The hardships of the past had terrified them of hunger, so when grain production decreased, they were terrified and panicked.

That's why they tried every possible way to store up grain.

But they forgot that this year was actually a bumper year; even with only half the harvest, they could barely make ends meet.

Our own family has more than ten mouths to feed. If we really lend out the grain, those who don't have enough to eat will become our own family.

Moreover, grain production was not high in those days. Even in a bumper year, the normal amount of grain distributed to each family was barely enough to feed so many mouths.

If they lend it out, they don't know when they'll be able to get it all back.

So after this meeting, most of the families who were hesitant about lending grain decided not to.

Only a few families managed to borrow some money through persistent pleading from their relatives.

*

That night, after finally staying up until midnight, Chen Jiandang asked impatiently, "Mom, shall we go dig mouse holes tonight?"

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(End of this chapter)