Sesame Ball was wagging his tail out of boredom, but was afraid of waking up the fat girl, so the movement of his tail was very small, and he looked a little aggrieved.
Liu Dongniang was amused. She went over to rub its big head and wiped the noodle soup off its mouth with her apron. Finally, she whispered, "Zhimaqiu, take good care of Zhuzhu. I'm going to work now. I'll prepare a basin of bones for you tonight, okay?"
Sesame Ball happily wagged its tail a couple more times, showing that the deal was done.
Liu Dongniang stood up and was about to leave, but Zhuzhu suddenly woke up, her big eyes full of fear, and she started crying with her mouth held back.
Liu Dongniang was startled and quickly hugged the fat girl in her arms, patting her gently to comfort her.
"What's wrong with Zhuzhu? Did you have a nightmare? Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, your aunt is here!"
"Wow, Auntie! There are bad guys!" The fat girl hugged her aunt's neck and cried, but she seemed afraid to say anything.
Finally, she just shouted, "Grandpa, Zhuzhu wants grandpa!"
Liu Dongniang rarely saw the fat girl like this, and she was a little anxious. She quickly chased Sesame Ball away.
"Zhimaqiu, go to the field and call the old man back! Hurry up!"
Sesame Ball ran out of the straw shed and went straight to the cornfield.
There is an old saying that there is strength in numbers. When there are many people, work can be done very quickly.
Seeing that the corn outside his village was almost harvested, the old man planned to lead a team of soldiers to Zhangjia Village. However, before he could set off, Zhimaqiu came running over and barked, and finally bit his trouser leg and dragged him towards the village.
The old man was caught off guard and almost fell, but fortunately he was supported by a soldier.
One soldier was in a bad mood and was about to kick the sesame ball away. The old man immediately stopped him and said, "Wait, little brother, please be gentle!"
He squatted down and patted the sesame ball with his good hand, signaling it not to be anxious. Then he said to everyone, "This dog has been raised in our family since it was young. When my grandson was kidnapped, it was he who led us to find him. So, although he is a dog, he is no different from our own child.
Perhaps it was in a hurry today, that's why it was so reckless, otherwise it would never be like this."
The grumpy soldier felt embarrassed and said quickly, "I'm sorry, old man, I didn't know..."
The old man quickly waved his hand and said with a smile, "It's okay, you don't know the inside story. I'm afraid anyone who sees it will think this dog has gone crazy!"
After that, he called Tai Jizu over and said, "Big Boss, take the brothers to Zhangjia Village to harvest corn. I'll go back home first. Remember to bring the brothers back early for dinner in the evening. Don't work on an empty stomach."
"I know, Dad."
Tai Jizu quickly responded and called on the soldiers to follow him.
Old Man Tai held his pipe in his hand and ran straight home.
Mr. Tai San originally wanted to talk to him about something, and he called out a few times from a distance, but he didn't hear...
Zhuzhu's big eyes were red from crying, and her little mouth was tightly pursed. No matter how Liu Dongniang coaxed her, she refused to speak.
Liu Dongniang finally saw the old man appear at the door of the straw hut, and she almost cried.
"Dad, you're back! Zhuzhu woke up crying and said she was scared! No matter what I asked, she wouldn't say anything!"
The old man quickly took his fat granddaughter over. Seeing that the fat girl's forehead was covered with sweat from crying, he was afraid that she would catch a cold, so he hurriedly took off his coat and wrapped the fat girl tightly.
"Second son's wife, go and do your work, I'll take care of this girl!"
Liu Dongniang breathed a sigh of relief and hurried to get busy.
Seeing that no one was around, the old man called Zhimaqiu'er to guard the door, and then asked quietly, "Why is Zhuzhu crying? Did she dream of bad people?"
Zhuzhu nodded vigorously, leaned close to her grandfather's ear, and said with sobs, "Grandpa, there are bad guys beating people with whips, beating a lot of people! They don't even let them eat, and they have to work at night. It's so pitiful!"
The old man frowned when he heard this, his brain was racing so fast that it was about to smoke, but he still couldn't figure out what this dream meant.
On the way, he wondered if the person behind the scenes was going to do something bad again, such as setting a fire or stealing corn, but he never expected it to be like this.
There are a lot of people working, and someone is whipping them?
Is it the supervisor?
Or confinement and hard labor?
"Zhuzhu, what do those people look like? Do you know them?"
The old man asked a few more questions tentatively, but the fat girl actually nodded and counted on her fingers in a baby voice, "Uncle Youcai, Tiedan's father, Brother Sangouzi's father! And..."
The old man's face changed immediately. They are all villagers!
"Is there anyone you don't know?"
Zhuzhu frowned, nodded and shook her head, "So many people, so many people! Zhuzhu forgot..."
The old man quickly comforted her, "Just forget it, Zhuzhu, don't be afraid, Grandpa knows!"
At this time, Yang Lihua rushed over after hearing what her sister-in-law said. Seeing the old man in the room, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"Dad, Zhuzhu is having a nightmare again?"
The old man nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "Zhuzhu dreamed of many people working. I suspect it was corvée labor or being abducted for hard labor. You take care of the child first. I'll go talk to your uncle."
Yang Lihua's expression changed immediately and she quickly took the child, not wanting to delay the old man from doing his work.
In this world, it is so difficult for ordinary people to survive!
They were afraid that war would break out and they would have to leave their homes and flee.
The second fear is that disasters will occur year after year, and even if we work hard for a year, we still cannot fill the stomachs of the whole family.
The third fear is that the government will increase taxes and labor service, which will separate the family and make them die of exhaustion!
Now that the war has not yet broken out and the disaster has just passed, is corvee labor about to follow?
God is so cruel that he won’t let us live in peace!
Uncle Tai San was holding his pipe, breathing heavily from exhaustion, and was thinking about catching up with his old brother to ask him what had happened.
As soon as we arrived at the village entrance, the old brother came out.
He pulled his old friend to sit under a big tree at the entrance of the village and asked, "What happened? Why are you running back in such a hurry? Is there something wrong with your cashmere business?"
"No," the old man shook his head and replied, "Jiye is now a good businessman. With him making arrangements, everything goes smoothly.
Not only have we bought the goods we need to take to the grassland, but we've also found a carriage for Brother He to transport the corn seeds."
"That's good, that's good!" Master Tai nodded repeatedly, "Let the caravan set off as soon as the corn is harvested. If it snows early, they will suffer outside."
After that, he asked again, "You haven't told me yet, what happened?"
The old man was a little hesitant. After all, his granddaughter's nightmare had not been confirmed. If something went wrong, wouldn't that make her older brother worried too?
Master Tai San saw that he was in trouble and became even more confused.
They have always been the two old brothers who discuss things together, so why are they hiding it today? What is going on?
He was a little anxious, so he waved his pipe and asked, "Sixth Brother, what happened? Tell me quickly, you are making me die of anxiety!
The old man quickly comforted him, "Third brother, don't worry, it's not a big deal, I think..."
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