16 Chapter 16
◎ Let more people have enough food, this is what I want to do◎
As the city was closed for a longer time, there were more and more thefts and robberies. Cheng Xi and her friends hadn't been affected yet, but it was hard to say what would happen next.
They had been hungry for too long, and in order to prevent them from eating too much as soon as they had something to eat, Cheng Mu only gave them some date porridge at night. The next morning, they had ginseng porridge to replenish their qi and blood. In the afternoon, they could eat steamed buns.
A day passed before Yu's mother and daughter came to their senses.
Gui'er thought, why not they just follow Madam Cheng, at least they can have some porridge every day.
Yu thought, however, that Madam Cheng might not be able to hold on for much longer, so it would be better not to make things difficult for her.
When she regained strength in her hands and was no longer feeling dizzy and panicky, Yu suggested that Cheng Mu continue making the unfinished clothes.
Yu didn't want to make things difficult for Cheng Mu, but she had no choice. On the one hand, she wanted to repay her for helping her twice in times of crisis by doing what she could, and on the other hand, she hoped to have a reason to stay. Dying is not easy, and living is even harder.
She told Guier to be lively.
There is no need to carry water here, and there is no firewood to be cut. Gui'er only has to clean the houses. Every wooden board in every house is polished by her.
When Cheng Mu said she wanted to pick yellow flowers, Gui'er ran to the vegetable garden first and picked all the yellow flowers in a few clicks.
"Madam Cheng, here."
The two of them talked about geography, and Cheng Xi asked her, "What are your and your mother's plans next?"
"Madam Cheng, we..." Gui'er looked confused. A flying insect crawled onto her face. Cheng Mu waved her hand to shoo it away, but Gui'er grabbed her hand and said, "Madam Cheng, we don't have any plans. Could you please not chase us away?"
Cheng Mu shook her head and said, "You should have a plan if you want to follow me. For example, how will you follow me? Will you stay with me as a relative, be hired as a servant, or sell yourself as a servant? How long will you follow me? Will you wait until the city reopens and the gates are re-opened, or will you stay for a year or two, or for a lifetime? You and your daughter depend on each other for survival. Do you want to start your own family or get married separately? Your mother is still young, and you can get married soon. You need to have a plan for all these."
Gui'er didn't think too much about it. She just took things one step at a time. After hearing Cheng Mu say so many things to consider in one breath, she thought to herself, she is worthy of being an educated person, she considers things so carefully.
Gui'er was very impressed and said sincerely, "I don't want to get married, and my mother doesn't want to get married either. Madam Cheng, what do you think we should do?"
Cheng Mu plucked a turnip and knocked it on the ground a few times, and small pieces of soil fell off.
"Are your houses and land in Zhaojia Village still there?"
Guier quickly took the things from her hand and said, "Everyone in the village who can leave has left. The land there can't support people. There's no way for my mother and I to go back."
"Will it be abandoned or sold?"
"Houses lie abandoned, and fields are pawned but no one buys them."
"Then there is a clear path ahead."
When the four of them were having dinner together, Cheng Xi told them about her plans.
Yu was surprised, "Madam Cheng wants to buy my family's land and houses?" She didn't quite agree. Farmers make their living from the soil, and that piece of land is too barren. Madam Cheng's uncle and sister-in-law grew up in the city and are not good at farming. What can they do if they go there?
Cheng Mu was willing to pay ten taels of silver to buy the right to use it for three years.
Ten taels of silver! The Yu family cultivated twenty mu of land, and they couldn't even dig up three taels of silver in a year. Madam Cheng's price was very tempting, and it was a living wage. The land was still in their hands, and they could redeem it after three years if they wanted.
Yu was very tempted, but she couldn't get over it in her heart. She didn't want to harm Madam Cheng.
Cheng Mu said, "To be honest, Aunt, my ancestors were quite knowledgeable in agriculture. I've read some books and have some good seeds, so I want to find a place to try it out. The more difficult the land is to grow food, the better. If I grow something, I'll open up a new path for everyone. If I fail, ten taels of silver is not much. I can just throw it into the water and wait for the water to swell for three years. It won't be a big deal for me."
Madam Cheng said that if she couldn't grow any crops, she would just throw the money into the water, and Yu had nothing else to say.
Cheng Mu continued, "If you are willing to go back with me, I will pay you a salary of three taels of silver a year."
Returning to the place where she had lived for more than ten or twenty years, she could receive ten taels of silver in three years' worth of pawn money, and another three taels of silver a year—this was something Yu had never dared to dream of. Gui'er's eyes lit up, and she eagerly agreed, shaking Yu's arm to urge her to agree quickly.
Yu's husband and son were buried there. If she could survive there, she would not want to leave her hometown.
It was settled, and Cheng Mu asked Mu Yun to sign the contract and keep the certificate on another day.
After the meal, Yu's mother and daughter cleaned the table, washed the dishes and cleared the floor.
Mu Yun followed Cheng Mu into the courtyard. He had never heard Cheng Mu express this before. "Are you going to farm?"
Cheng Mu asked him formally, "Do you agree to go without discussing it with you in advance?"
Mu Yun didn't care, "It's the same everywhere." What he was worried about was that Cheng Mu was not a farmer. He couldn't imagine such a delicate woman working as a farmer. Besides, "You can grow any seeds. You don't need land at all."
With such divine power, do you still need to face the earth and the sky?
At this time, the sun had set, the sky was deep blue, and everything around was extremely quiet. The person in front of him had a mysterious smile on his face, her face was warm and emitted a soft light. Everything else was cold and had retreated away from them. Many years later, Mu Yun still remembered this moment.
"I can eat my own food, but what about the people around me? Some seeds won't sprout, and some land won't produce food. Aunt Yu's village is like that; everyone who can leave has left. In some places, taxes are high, and in some years, natural and man-made disasters are rampant, making it difficult for people to feed their families through farming... People around the world have it so hard," Cheng said. "I want to help more people have enough to eat."
How could a young lady in the boudoir have such ambition? Madam Cheng must be a fairy from heaven who came down to earth to save him, cultivate him, and plant a seed in his heart.
It was late at night, Mu Yun tossed and turned, feeling itchy and swollen in his chest, and a sense of anger kept him from falling asleep.
Let’s go to the yard and practice a few sets of boxing.
The night breeze was cool and refreshing, and it was very comfortable. If it weren't for the person peeking out from the second door,
Mu Yun hid himself in the dark and approached quietly on tiptoe.
The person outside the second gate looking into the inner courtyard was a lookout. In the kitchen, two people were moving things: half a bag of flour and half a bag of millet, which were the only two kinds of food that Cheng Mu kept in the kitchen.
After searching everywhere, they only found this little thing, and carried it up cursing.
Mu Yun picked up a stick used to lock doors on the wall and shouted, "Where did this thief come from!" He swung it at the man who was keeping watch.
The three thieves were inevitably panicked when they were discovered. Mu Yun's stick avoided the vital parts and only hit the shoulder. The man quickly jumped up.
Seeing that he was only a kid in his early teens, the three men became bolder and attacked him together.
The moon slipped into a cloud, its light leaking out from around the edges, giving it a blurred edge of light. Someone in the alley shouted, "There's a thief!"
Mu Yun was fighting hard with the three men when a person rushed out from the inner courtyard to help. It was Gui'er.
Guier saw the two sacks that the thieves had taken out. These were the only grains left in the kitchen. She immediately became furious and rushed to the man closest to the grain. With her arms outstretched, she hugged him and threw him to the ground. She quickly snatched back the two bags and ran towards the inner courtyard.
The thieves were afraid that others would be woken up and rush out, so they gave up fighting and opened the door to escape.
Unexpectedly, there was someone guarding the door. The first person who escaped flew back and hit the second person who wanted to escape.
The helper outside the door stepped in. Mu Yun saw the arm swaying up and down as he walked and knew who it was, so he quickly surrounded the other thief.
Gui'er put the grain bag in the inner courtyard and came out again. The three of them surrounded the three thieves and beat them up with punches and kicks, making the little thieves beg for mercy repeatedly.
There were six people in their group, and the other three were stealing from another house in the alley, the one that had just shouted there was a thief.
The city is in chaos now, and the county government is not doing its job. It is useless to report to the officials for housebreaking and robbery. It is better to vent your anger by beating them up at home.
After driving away the thieves, Guier was very happy and thanked the people who came to help.
Mu Yun had a wooden face and also thanked Qi Song.
Cheng Mu and Yu were awakened and came out.
We were robbed at night, but luckily we escaped harm. However, with so many thieves, it was clear that the situation in the city was not optimistic.
When Qi Song turned around to leave, he staggered a few steps and fell to the ground. Everyone was shocked, thinking he was seriously injured.
Qi Song waved his hand and said, "It's okay, I'm just hungry."
We ran out of firewood today and have nowhere to buy more, luckily we still have some charcoal stored at home.
Food is cooked in a small red clay stove and pottery pots.
The water in the ceramic pot was boiled, Cheng Mu poured the noodles into it and boiled them for a while.
There is only dough balls and nothing else, pour them into a ceramic bowl, add some salt, a few drops of sesame oil, and stir.
"Uncle Qi, these are all we have. Please make do with them for now."
The aroma of flour and sesame oil penetrated his nose. For someone who had been hungry for several days, this was the ultimate delicacy. Qi Song took it with both hands, and could not wait any longer. He slurped a few mouthfuls and poured it down his throat. He did not care if it was hot, as long as he could fill his stomach.
Mu Yunben was about to hand over the chopsticks, but when he saw Qi Song finish the food in two or three bites, he silently withdrew his hand.
Qi Song took a long breath, as if he was savoring the taste, but it was only for a brief moment. In the blink of an eye, he rinsed the bowl with well water and returned it to Cheng Mu cleanly.
Cheng Mu asked him what to do next. He had no food left, so how could he buy food from outside?
Qi Song told him that the beggars and hooligans in the city formed gangs and not only robbed people's houses, but also robbed food stores. "This is not the last time your house will be robbed. You must be more careful in the future."
Cheng Mu was already prepared. Even if the thieves came, they would be hard to guard against. If they formed a gang and had too many people, they would be helpless.
Why hasn't this damn fight for the crown prince ended yet?
Mu Yun asked Qi Song, "Where are you staying?"
Qi Song said ashamedly, "Originally, the whole world was my home..." Now I can only be said to have no fixed place to live.
Mu Yun had met him three times in the past two months. Every time, he would suddenly jump out, exchange a few moves with him, and then leave.
Mu Yun thought to himself, if I reject you, won't you go back to the Wu family? My father is dead, and I don't need you to teach me martial arts. The city gates have been closed for almost half a month. Is it that with your ability, you can't leave and find food?
He made himself look like this on purpose to make others feel guilty.
Cheng Mu looked at Mu Yun.
Mu Yun looked away, cleared his throat, and said, "There have been a lot of thieves lately, and we're in need of a doorman. Are you willing?"
Qi Song seemed a little excited. "I am very grateful for giving me a job. I have some martial arts skills and will definitely guard the house for you young lady and young master."
Mu Yun thought to himself, "Just pretend." He said, "All food and lodging are included, and the monthly salary is five cents. A contract is the proof."
Qi Song's goal was to stay with the young master, and he didn't care how much money he was paid or what food he ate. He agreed to whatever he said.
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