Next, they passed through another town. Their supplies were almost exhausted, and it was time to go into the town to resupply.
Everyone went to town to rest. It was a rare quiet place, and after eating, everyone had a good night's sleep.
Meanwhile, Mu Wanting went with Su Yu and Shen Xinglan to buy supplies.
Otherwise, her things would be hard to explain.
Shen Xinglan wisely didn't follow her, while Mu Wanting bought everything she liked.
Later she felt that this was too slow, as she only had an hour to make purchases, and she bought some items on the surface.
He then went into the shop and ransacked it, leaving behind more than enough money.
She discovered that her space was upgraded by hoarding resources; the more resources she hoarded, the faster it upgraded.
I don't know if it's related to the size of the item or its value.
After wandering around the city, she had almost bought up all the shops, big and small, and the shop owners were all grinning from ear to ear as they looked at the money.
We can have more customers like this who buy things without saying a word, saving them the trouble of negotiating and even getting higher prices than usual.
They had just settled into the inn when they saw officials walking from shop to shop outside, their attitude extremely arrogant, demanding that the merchants pay taxes.
Moreover, the amount to be paid was quite outrageous, one or two ounces at a time. If you didn't pay, you would either have your shop shut down or be beaten up.
Mu Wanting sighed, "These people probably use all the money they earn to bribe the officials."
But that's not something they can control.
After passing the town, they headed into the countryside and happened to see farmers toiling in the fields.
It's harvest season now, but we're already struggling to make ends meet. The officials have taken most of it to pay taxes, and our whole family might starve.
Mu Wanting frowned, and Shen Xinglan said, "Excessive taxes and levies have existed since ancient times, but they have become even more excessive under this emperor."
That night, they rested in a village. The villagers, who looked distressed and were themselves eating poorly, still offered them thick porridge.
Mu Wanting felt a pang of pity.
She observed carefully and found that everyone in the village was a good person. They couldn't refuse her kindness, so they ate the porridge. When all the convicts went to sleep that night, Mu Wanting took two sacks of grain from the cart and placed them in front of them.
Upon seeing this, the host immediately declined.
"Girl, what are you doing?"
Mu Wanting chuckled: "We have a lot of convicts and have eaten a lot of your food. You've had a hard time here, so please accept it."
After several attempts to refuse, they finally accepted. The family had a very pretty little girl named Hua'er, who happily chatted with Mu Wanting for quite a while.
"Sister Mu, thank you so much. The food you gave us can save our whole family's lives."
Mu Wanting would occasionally reply with a few words, and Hua'er would talk excitedly for a long time, seemingly unable to stop.
From the history of this place all the way to the county magistrate here.
"Originally, the county magistrate was alright, but ever since the war started, he has changed completely and started to levy taxes violently, causing immense suffering to us ordinary people."
"His behavior during this period has been completely unrestrained; even robbers aren't as terrifying as them."
Flower's mother made a shushing gesture to Flower.
"You can't say that."
Hua pouted and fell silent.
Mu Wanting couldn't help but laugh and patted her little head.
"Alright, go and get some rest."
Hua'er smiled and nodded, "Sister Mu, I'll take you to your room."
There are a lot of empty houses in this village, and they have all been vacant for a short time.
Hua sighed, "There's nothing we can do. With a magistrate like this, nobody can live a good life. Who would want to stay here?"
"But being a refugee isn't easy either. They've lost their land, and life is even harder for them. Now they're halfway there, and it's difficult for them to come back."
Mu Wanting secretly slipped her a few pieces of osmanthus cake.
Go to bed early.
Hua'er's eyes lit up, and she nodded happily.
While lying in bed, Mu Wanting could even hear Hua'er gently coaxing her mother and the others to eat; her voice was sweet and lively.
Flower's mother was somewhat reproachful that Flower had accepted her things.
They're all good people. Mu Wanting smiled and slowly fell asleep.
When she woke up again, she went to the space to take care of her third brother. Her third brother's health had improved a lot. She found that with the help of this herbal medicine, her third brother's resistance had been fundamentally strengthened.
She also felt that her own qualifications seemed to have been altered.
Previously, she could only practice martial arts that focused on flexibility; she couldn't practice anything else.
But now, with the upgrade of her physique, she can also cultivate those things that require strength.
It seems that the white soup is for detoxification, while the yellow soup is for changing one's constitution.
She had just finished giving her third brother acupuncture when she heard a commotion outside the room.
"Didn't they just collect taxes the day before yesterday? Why are they collecting taxes again today?"
It was Hua'er's mother's anxious voice.
"This is our own business, and it's not something you can question?"
Flower Girl's mother said with a bitter smile, "Sir, we really have no other food to eat."
The officials ignored this and pushed open the doors to search each room one by one.
When Mu Wanting went out, the two sacks of grain she had given had already been confiscated by the officials.
Flower's mother, Flower's father, and Flower herself were all whipped.
"Fine, what is the punishment for hoarding grain?"
Hua'er's mother said, "No, we just bought this grain yesterday. If you don't believe me, take a look. The grain in our village is not of such good quality."
When the officials saw that this was indeed the case, they stopped punishing them.
Then, the officials looked at the flowers, exchanged glances, and had malicious smiles on their lips.
The head constable spoke.
"This young lady is quite nice. I wonder if she's ready for marriage? I'm looking for a wife."
When Hua'er saw the leader, who had a fat head and big ears, she was so frightened that she hid behind her mother.
"I am already married."
The leader frowned: "Why haven't we heard about this?"
A constable next to her said, "Just take her away. As long as she's not married, it's no big deal. Even if she is married... hehehehehe."
The rest was left unsaid, but everyone knew what it meant.
The exiled criminals and Ma Dazhuang and the others watching frowned, but none of them interfered.
Hua'er was taken away by several officers, while the other officers turned their attention to Ma Dazhuang. After the routine greeting, the leader spoke.
"Brother, different places have different rules. If you pass through here, you have to pay a road maintenance fee."
The officials looked at the dilapidated road and wondered if the road maintenance fee had gone to waste.
Ma Dazhuang made some money on this trip, but it was far from meeting his expectations, and it was impossible for him to pay any more.
"Brothers, please do us a favor; we really have no money."
As soon as Ma Dazhuang finished speaking, he saw that the faces of several yamen runners had darkened.
"I won't say much, but giving each of you 10 taels of silver isn't too much to ask, is it?"
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