Soon, a notice was posted on the bulletin board in front of the yamen. Two literate officers, with swords slung over their waists, read the notice aloud to the gathered people.
Most of the common people were illiterate, but they knew what corvée labor meant. When they heard that they would gather in three days and that the fine for refusing labor would be doubled, everyone started arguing!
"Why are we levying corvée labor? It's the autumn harvest, and every family is busy. Are we going to throw the grain in the fields to build roads?"
"Yeah, it's really unfair, it's almost fatal!"
"One out of every two people killed is too cruel! A family of five, at least two will die? Even if they all come back alive, what will happen to the family? What if God is not merciful and a rain destroys all the food!"
"It used to be three-for-one!"
"It's over, it's over, I really can't let anyone survive!"
Everyone was talking about it, and no one looked happy, but they left in a hurry without saying a word, looking for relatives and friends to tell them the bad news.
The Zheng corvée was like a bowl of ink spilled in a basin of water, quickly permeating the entire Tai'an County.
Taijia Village had horse-drawn carriages running between the county town and the village. Even during the busy autumn harvest, there was always a trip a day. Originally, they were meant for Yongning and Yongfeng to return home at any time, but today, they came in handy...
Old Man Tai sat under a large tree at the entrance to the village. He tore off some tobacco leaves and stuffed them into a pouch, then handed it to his elder brother. He said with a smile, "Everyone has put in a lot of effort. The fields are almost clean. Even if it rains tomorrow, we won't be afraid!"
"Yes, I can finally put my mind at ease!" Mr. Tai San was very happy. He pinched some tobacco and stuffed it into the pipe. He soon started to puff on it, exhaled a puff of smoke, and his brows relaxed.
Zhimaqiu was being chased around by Zhuzhu and happened to run to a nearby place. He was choked by the smoke and sneezed, causing his medium-length dog hair to tremble.
The old man laughed and rubbed its head. "Sesame Ball has suffered a lot this summer. It was so hot that it stuck out its tongue every day. Now that the weather is getting cooler, it's feeling better."
"Haha, it's covered in fur. How can it not be hot wearing a fur coat in the middle of summer?"
"Luckily, Zhimaqiu isn't a purebred mastiff. I heard that purebred mastiffs have fur that's half a foot long, and they can only hide in the grass in the summer."
"I've heard about it, too. It's a pity I'm too old to go to the grassland and see it with my own eyes. I can only listen to the village boys bragging about it!"
The two old brothers were talking animatedly, and Zhuzhu ran over, holding a red bean cake and eating it slowly.
The old man held his granddaughter on his lap and was about to say something when the village carriage came rushing back!
The old man driving the cart shouted from a distance, "Head, something's happened! They're collecting corvée labor! They're collecting corvée labor!"
The old man and Mr. Tai San stood up together, looked at each other, and both felt that everything was settled.
The old man driving the cart was still shouting, "This time, we're going to conscript one out of every two men. If you don't do the labor service, you'll be fined twice as much! Chief, find a solution quickly! This is a matter of life and death!"
Third Master Tai replied, "What else can I do? I can only accept the fine. The whole county knows that all the men and women in our Taijia Village are out!"
The old man driving the cart was stunned for a while, then he looked at Master Tai San with sudden realization, "Chief, this... this..."
It has to be said that he is a very experienced man. He has already figured out the reason why the whole village was driven out of the border.
No wonder he felt that the patriarch was mobilizing too many troops. Even if he valued the corn seeds for the border guards, he could not abandon his homes and businesses and let all the young and strong people in the village help with the transportation!
The old man waved his hand, signaling him not to reveal the details even if he knew them, and whispered, "Wait for me to go around the county tomorrow and see how much fine each family needs. Although it will cost you money, it's better than losing your life!"
The old man driving the cart nodded repeatedly. He had also experienced corvee labor and definitely didn't want his children and grandchildren to wander around the gates of hell again!
"Okay, I must spend money to avoid disaster. Nothing is more important than life!"
As they were talking, Tai Yongning and Yongfeng had also hired a carriage and were running back. As soon as they saw the old man driving the carriage, Yongfeng complained, "Fourth Grandpa, we saw your carriage run away, so we had no choice but to hire a carriage and chased you all the way!"
The old man driving the cart laughed and felt very embarrassed.
"I was too anxious, afraid that the tribe would find out too late and not be able to respond. Next time, next time I will definitely wait for you!"
Tai Yongning didn't care about these things and quickly said to his grandfather, "Grandpa, I asked the teacher, our family has not yet divided. My reputation as a scholar can exempt our family from corvée labor!"
Grandpa Tai smiled and patted his grandson's shoulder, saying, "Grandpa knows that Yongning has made it big and can protect the family!"
Tai Yongning blushed a little, turned his head to look at Third Master Tai, then stopped smiling and bowed, saying, "Third Master, I will study hard. Once I pass the imperial examination, all of our family will no longer have to serve in the corvee."
"That's good enough," Master Tai San was not greedy. Instead, he advised Yongning, "No one can eat a fat man in one bite. It's already good enough for you to pass the exam at such a young age. Let's take the rest slowly. Don't exhaust your brain!"
Old Master Tai also said, "Your Third Grandpa is right. This is not something to be rushed. Things are not like they used to be at home now. We are not completely helpless when encountering problems."
Having said this, he handed Zhuzhu to Yongning and said, "Go into the house and see your mother and the others. Grandpa is still busy."
Yongning nodded, teased his sister and went into the yard, and Yongfeng also went home.
Uncle Tai San talked with his old brothers for a while, and when all the villagers, young and old, women and children came back in the evening, they talked about the matter under a big tree.
The men, young and old, had never been to school, and usually the men had the final say. But now that the men were away, and something as serious as this had happened, naturally, no one was in control.
So, they did whatever Mr. Tai Sanye instructed them to do.
There was originally some fear and worry, but it disappeared because of the unified situation and unified actions of the whole village!
Early the next morning, the old man took a carriage into the city, found Manager Min, and then went to look for the official in charge of conscription.
Anyone who could make a living in the county government office was as cunning as a sieve. Moreover, the Tai family had set out with great fanfare before, and everyone in the city knew about it. The official almost immediately guessed the old man's intention.
The old man didn't waste any time and went straight to the point. "Brother, you should have heard that most of the men in our village, young and old, are away. We never expected that we would be suddenly required to perform labor service at this time. So, we have no choice but to pay the fine."
"But I have no idea how much to pay, and whether the whole village can be exempted from labor service. I'd like to trouble you to ask around and give me a definite answer!"
After saying that, he directly stuffed a ten-liang silver note into the official's pocket and said, "Brother, you are very busy now, so I won't delay you any longer. Please accept this small gift and buy a cup of tea when you have free time."
The official pinched the banknote, feeling satisfied, but said a few polite words and then hurried to the back court.
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