Two days later.

From Nanzhao County, on the official road to Lushan County post station.

An old man with a dark face and his son were driving a ox cart, swaying forward.

Sitting in the cart at the back was a fair-skinned, handsome young man.

He was leaning against the side of the cart, wearing a farmer's straw hat, looking particularly comfortable and relaxed, his eyes surveying the farmlands and villages on both sides of the official road.

This young man is naturally Cui Xian.

He left Nanyang in a low profile, treating his trip to Luoyang to attend a literary gathering as a "trip on a whim".

Therefore, he did not bring any servants with him, nor did he hire a carriage. After leaving Nanyang, he slowly set out towards the north.

Until he arrived in Nanzhao County, he met this kind-hearted father and son who were willing to give him a ride.

The old man never keeps his mouth shut.

Noticing that Cui Xian had been looking at the farmland on both sides, he sighed, "There has been little rain and snow this year, and I'm afraid the harvest won't yield even one dan of grain per acre of land."

One dan is approximately equivalent to 120-130 jin in later generations.

In this era, crop yields per acre are shockingly low.

When they were in Hexi Village, the Cui family had thirty acres of land, which seemed like a lot.

But once you calculate the output and deduct the terrifying grain tax, the remaining is barely enough to fill the stomach.

Nanzhao County is mountainous and poorer than Nanyang County.

As Cui Xian walked along the way, he found that the houses in each village were basically adobe and thatched huts, and even brick and tile houses were rarely seen.

It's shockingly poor.

From being frightened by the poverty of Hexi Village when he first crossed over, to working hard to get out of Hexi Village and let his family live a good life.

Now that I have walked out of Nanyang and seen the even poorer world outside, it is really a sad feeling.

Cui Xian was silent for a moment while listening to the old man's words, and then he said as a reminder: "I heard that there was a severe drought in Shaanxi, and many people starved to death. We have little rain here, and the situation may become worse as well."

"When the old man returns, he can discuss with the villagers and dig another deep well."

Severe drought in Shaanxi?

Hearing this, both the father and the son were shocked.

Because Cui Xian was wearing Confucian clothes and was a scholar, the two believed what he said without a doubt.

"Thanks for the reminder, little brother."

The old man took note of it and generously handed Cui Xian a steamed bread, grinning and saying, "We usually eat this, don't despise it, little brother."

Cui Xian took it and said with a smile: "Food is such a precious good thing, how could anyone despise it?"

Then he opened his mouth and took a bite.

To be honest, it was a bit dry and the taste was not very good. But when this steamed bread was handed over, I think the other party must have hesitated for a long time.

In an age of material scarcity, every grain of food should not be wasted.

Seeing Cui Xian eating, the old man was very happy and agreed: "Yes, food is the most precious thing! The little prodigy in Nanyang said that every grain of rice is hard-earned!"

Cui Xian was stunned.

Seeing Cui Xian's expression, the old man blushed: "I also heard it from others. Could it be that I remembered it wrongly? Alas, we are mud-slickers here, and we can't even understand the language."

His son laughed beside him.

Cui Xian also laughed: "That's what I said, right!"

Nanzhao County is adjacent to Nanyang County. It is not surprising that five years have passed and the "Two Poems of Pity the Peasants" has been sung here.

However, when this poem comes out of the old farmer's mouth, it is still quite shocking.

The beginning of putting down "thousands of books" and "traveling thousands of miles" gave Cui Xian a lot of feelings.

But the journey has just begun.

He still has to move forward and forge his own path, striving to make sure that the world no longer needs to "pity the peasants".

The ox cart is about to arrive at the Lushan County Post Station.

The two sides separated.

Cui Xian took off his straw hat, put it in the ox cart, flexibly turned over and jumped off the cart, turned his back to the father and son and waved: "Thank you very much, remember what I said, dig a deep well."

The young man walked freely, with a tall and slender back.

The old man's son sighed: "It costs at least half a string of money to dig a well, and young people don't know money——"

As he said this, he subconsciously reached for the straw hat that Cui Xian had placed in the ox cart, but his eyes suddenly widened.

There was exactly half a string of coins in the straw hat.

The old man also saw it, and turned around suddenly to call Cui Xian, but he could no longer see any trace of him.

His son's eyes were red. "Dad, we met a good man! You see, although we are poor, we will also meet good times, right? Don't always say things like, if I die, everything will be over, and I can save food for myself."

"It's painful for my son to hear that."

The old man nodded in a trembling voice: "Well, let's not talk about it anymore. Let's go back and dig a well."

The difficult and hard days are so suffocating that sometimes I feel like I can’t go on.

So a little warmth and kindness makes the day sweet.

The other side.

Cui Xian came to the Lushan County post station with his luggage.

He was wearing a scholar's robe and looked very dignified, and it was obvious at first glance that he was well-educated.

A postman walked out of the post house and asked tentatively, "Excuse me, are you going to participate in the Luoyang Flower Appreciation and Literature Conference?"

Cui Xian nodded and smiled: "That's right."

The postman was much more polite: "Yesterday we received news from Song County that a group of scholars who were also going to attend the literary meeting would pass by Lushan today. It's a coincidence. If you wait a little, you will be able to join them."

It seems that this flower-viewing and literary gathering in Luoyang is a grand event.

He had actually arranged receptionists in Lushan and Songxian in advance.

Cui Xian sat down at the inn to rest.

After waiting for about half a day, the sound of horse hooves was heard from the distant official road.

then.

Then they saw two fine horses pulling a luxurious carriage, leading a dozen relatively ordinary carriages, coming in a mighty procession.

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