Now that only the elderly, women, and children remained in the village, He Shan and his men had a particularly important responsibility. With the crops almost completely harvested, their patrols were confined to the village's perimeter, especially at the foot of the mountain.
Because the wild animals in the mountains also have to prepare for winter, eating and drinking more to gain weight in autumn is the confidence they need to withstand the severe cold.
With so much food in the village, it is inevitable that it will become their target.
But that night, He Shan and others did not encounter any wild beasts, but instead encountered a few human figures sneaking into the village!
"Who is it?" He Shan and others were divided into three teams. His team only had four people. It was not easy to confront them head-on, so he could only shout and try to scare the thieves away.
Unexpectedly, the thief not only did not run away, but stood there in a daze.
He could only shout again, "Who are you and why are you walking around at night? Get out of here right now! If you dare to take another step forward, don't blame me for being blind with my sword and arrows!"
This time, the other side finally reacted, and someone responded, "Brother He, we're back!"
He Shan was surprised when he recognized Tai Jizu's voice, but he still didn't put away the knife.
"Brother Jizu, are you guys back?"
Tai Jizu groped forward and chuckled softly, "Yes, we've all returned from the border. We didn't know what was going on in the village, so we could only sneak in at night. I didn't expect to run into you!"
As he was saying this, several other villagers came forward, including Tiedan's father, Aunt Tai San's son, etc., all of whom were familiar with each other.
He Shan was completely relieved. He put away his knife and instructed, "You guys hurry into the village. Everyone is fine. It's just that many people from other villages have been conscripted and taken away for labor service, so we can't make it public. We will continue to patrol. Let me know if there is anything."
"Okay, okay, thank you for your hard work. Let's go back first and talk about it in detail later." Tai Jizu was worried and after a few words, he quickly led the villagers into the village.
Everyone was asleep, so it was naturally dark.
Tai Jizu brought a few people to the door of his house. After thinking for a while, he instructed Tiedan'er's father, "Go and invite the clan leader. Don't alarm the others for now."
Tiedan's father hurried over. At this time, Zhimaqiu, who was guarding the yard at night, also smelled the familiar smell, called out, and ran inside.
Soon, the oil lamps in the main room were lit.
Old Master Tai came out in his slippers, opened the door, and welcomed everyone in. He looked at everyone one by one, saying repeatedly, "Okay, okay, I'm glad you're back!"
Yang Lihua and Liu Dongniang also heard the noise, but without disturbing the children, they hurried out to help boil water. When they heard that everyone had not eaten yet, they quickly prepared a pot of noodle soup.
By the time Mr. Tai San came stumbling over, dressed in his clothes, everyone was already holding their bowls and eating voraciously.
Mr. Tai San also breathed a sigh of relief, and his tense heart was finally at ease.
You know, it is a risky thing to send all the young and strong people in the village, including the boys, out of the village.
If anything happens to them outside, the Tai family will be finished.
After everyone had eaten their fill, warmed up, and felt more energetic, they began to talk about what they had seen and heard along the way.
Tai Jizu also took out the silver money for the corn seeds and handed it to Master Tai San with both hands.
Master Tai thought for a moment and said to his old brother, "This time, we all avoided the corvée and labor service, and we also had to resort to favors with the government. It was all you who arranged it. Even the fines were paid in advance! So, I'll leave this money with you first. When the corvée is over and everyone comes back, we can slowly settle the accounts. There's no rush."
The old man nodded, called Yang Lihua, asked her to collect the banknotes, and instructed her, "Keep a good record of the accounts and explain everything to everyone later."
"Got it, Dad." Yang Lihua put away the banknotes and asked, "Are you all going back to the mountain tonight? Do we need to prepare some dry food?"
The old man thought about it and said to everyone, "You should go home tonight and let your families know that you are safe. Come over before dawn tomorrow morning and carry some rice, flour and other supplies up the mountain. You can stay in the wooden house on the mountain for a few days."
"If anyone is worried about home, we can discuss it with each other and take turns coming back half the night, but you must not appear in the village during the day. Do you understand?"
"I understand!" Everyone responded in unison, all of them were very happy.
Master Tai San also said, "I don't know what the situation is with this corvée. We managed to avoid it by using tricks and spending money. It's really not good to let outsiders know and cause jealousy and quarrels. You should also be careful in the mountains and don't make too much noise. After half a month, when this matter is over, you can come back."
"Yes, Uncle San, we all know."
"Yes, we must be careful."
"Isn't it just that I'm in the mountains during the day and go home at night? Just think of it as working in the mountains."
Everyone responded, all looking relaxed.
Seeing that nothing was wrong, Mr. Tai asked everyone to leave.
Needless to say, each family was very excited about the return of their loved ones, but they also knew the seriousness of the matter and did not make too much noise.
The next morning, before daybreak, Yang Lihua opened the warehouse and took out three bags of sorghum rice, one bag of white rice, and some oil, salt, sauce and vinegar, and packed them all.
When everyone came out of their homes rubbing their eyes, they also brought some vegetables from the garden. It really looked like they were living in the mountains.
Aunt Tai San was actually also carrying a basket on her back. She said to Yang Lihua, "Stepmother's wife, I am going up the mountain with you too. These old men don't even have a spoon to cook with on a regular basis. I'm afraid it's impossible for them to cook on the mountain by themselves."
"If the forest burns down, it will be a disaster. I'll go with you to cook and will be back in the evening. My daughter-in-law and grandson are the only ones left at home. Please help take care of them for me."
Yang Lihua quickly agreed, "Okay, don't worry, Auntie, leave the housework to me. Tomorrow someone else will go to the mountains to cook. It will only take about half a month in total. Let's help each other."
When the first ray of morning light fell on Taijia Village, everyone who should go up the mountain had gone up the mountain, and everyone who should know about the return of the departed also knew!
Although the village is still as quiet as before, there is a hint of joy hidden in it.
Even Master Tai Sanye's pipe was swung more vigorously than before, and he almost jumped and skipped when he walked like a naughty boy!
When the women gathered together to work, they couldn't help but talk quietly.
"I don't know who's coming back tonight. My old man will probably bring back a bag of dirty clothes for me to wash!"
"It doesn't matter whether I come back or not, as long as I know they are okay."
"Yes, I heard that Third Aunt went up the mountain. They have food and drink, and they don't have to work. Their life is simply perfect!"
And the men and women in the mountains were just as the women had guessed. They had enough to eat and drink and had nothing to do, so they set traps near the cabin to hunt rabbits and catch pheasants.
Some young and strong people who are not afraid of the cold even ran to the stream to take a good bath. I don’t know if they are worried about coming home with a sweaty body and being disliked by their wives...
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