Chapter 131
Several families in the village suffered misfortune, and those who knew them felt sorry for them.
But seeing that they were going to Village Chief Mu's place every day to replenish the money in the village's public account, they realized that the villagers were trying to do so.
Immediately, many families were unhappy. Their livestock and poultry were not damaged by the villagers, so why should the village compensate them?
It's not like we're starving because of the wolves coming down the mountain.
Besides, the poultry were eaten because they didn't protect them properly. When they heard the wolf howling, they didn't even have to worry about the pigs, let alone the chickens and ducks, they had to quickly bring them back inside.
For a time, the village chief's house was overcrowded. Some people came asking for money, while many others refused to give them any.
The house was a mess, and the noise was giving Chief Kimura a real headache.
“Village chief, if you give them money, then shouldn’t the village also compensate me for the chickens and ducks that died of disease in the autumn?”
Upon hearing this, the villagers who had come to ask for the money immediately objected.
A woman, hands on her hips, scolded, "You can't blame anyone but yourself for not knowing how to raise your children. We are victims of natural disasters and wolves, and the village should be subsidizing us."
"That's right. The New Year is just around the corner, and we were saving the pig for the New Year to eat. Now, what are we going to eat for the New Year? Are we going to starve?"
"If you yourselves don't build your own courtyard walls properly, who can you blame?"
“Some of my chickens and ducks have frozen to death these past few days. According to your logic, shouldn’t the village compensate me with some money? It’s the time when they’re laying eggs, so they’re quite valuable.”
“Village chief, the money in the village’s public account belongs to all the villagers. A couple of years ago, they said they would build a village school. All the children in the family are waiting to learn to read and write. We can’t waste the money.”
"That's right. Nowadays, if you want your child to learn a few words, you have to travel several miles to a village. In the dead of winter, when the child comes back, their feet are all red from walking. As their mother, it breaks my heart to see that. I'm just hoping that the school in our village will be completed."
"What, you only care about your own child? My pig just died like that, how selfish of you."
"The wolf doesn't care if it doesn't bite its own home."
Village Chief Kim, unable to contain himself any longer, slammed his cane into the ground and snapped, "Enough! Stop arguing!"
The women and their husbands who were arguing the loudest immediately shut up, embarrassed.
Kimura's eldest son, Furou, came over with a cup of hot tea and said slowly, "Everyone, please don't be in a hurry. My father has been in the village for so many years and he is known to be the most fair person. We all know that. It's also very cold outside. Let's all have a cup of hot tea to warm ourselves up. It won't be too late to settle this matter after my father discusses it with the uncles and elders in the village."
The eldest son of the Kimura clan, Mu Genfa, is Mu Jin's great-uncle. Over the years, the village chief has personally mentored him, and it's obvious to everyone that he is the only one who will become the next village chief of the Kimura clan.
Since the prospective village chief's husband spoke in a gentle and kind manner, the villagers who came naturally gave him some face.
"Since Chunyu has said so, it's alright for us all to wait a little longer."
"That's true, the village chief will surely get justice."
The noise subsided, and Lin Chunyu handed each of them a cup of hot tea, finally calming them down.
Chief Kimura's expression was one of satisfaction. Someone like Lin Chunyu, who was steady in his actions and calm in the face of adversity, was truly worthy of being the husband of a village chief.
As the village gong sounded, Mu Jin was leaning against the headboard, conceiving the story she wanted to write.
He has been reading a lot of storybooks lately and feels confident that he can also write a shocking, captivating, and tear-jerking story.
Just as I was thinking of the most heart-wrenching part, I heard a series of loud gong sounds coming from the courtyard gate.
Just as Mu Jin was about to get up, she felt a chill and lay back down.
Before long, Zhou Lin went upstairs.
"The village chief is calling everyone to his house to discuss something. One person from each household is fine. I'm going there right away. You stay home and rest well."
Hibiscus nodded obediently. This winter was indeed much colder than in previous years. Not long after the start of winter, it was already colder than the coldest days of last year.
Now that she could comfortably rest in a warm bed, and with her body becoming increasingly cumbersome, Mu Jin no longer wanted to go outside.
"When you come back, go and see if there's any tofu for sale in the village. We've finished the ones we bought earlier."
Zhou Lin nodded, carefully closed the door to prevent any cold air from getting in, went downstairs, instructed Lin Huzi to keep an eye on the livestock and poultry, and then went to the village chief's house.
When Zhou Lin arrived, many villagers had already gathered in the village chief's courtyard.
Everyone had their hands tucked in, necks hunched, and feet stamping.
Muttering to themselves, in this freezing weather, the village chief had no idea why he had called them here.
Once everyone was there, Mu Genfa went inside and called out to Village Chief Mu.
"It's inconvenient to call everyone over in the dead of winter, so please understand."
A man was stamping his feet, his body shivering from the cold. He hadn't stopped stamping his feet since he entered the yard.
"Village chief, forget about being understanding, just tell me what's wrong, it's freezing!"
Village Chief Mu didn't mince words and said directly, "This winter, our village was first hit by a snow disaster, and then wolves came down from the mountains, destroying many of our villagers' livestock and poultry. Next winter, we're afraid there will be no wheat harvest either. The money in the village's public account is what we all saved up by sending two catties of wheat to each household every year, based on the number of people in our family who are sixteen years old or older.
Everyone nodded in agreement. This practice had been passed down in Mujia Village for nearly a hundred years. After the villagers harvested their grain, they would naturally send over two catties of wheat without saying a word.
The canteen was built to support the widows, widowers, and orphans in the village, and also so that if disaster struck one day, the money the village had saved could help the villagers get through the disaster safely.
Thanks to the safety net of the bank account, although the villagers were anxious and uneasy during this year's snow disaster, they all knew that the money in the village's public account could help them get through the crisis, and the whole village remained relatively stable and peaceful.
Mu Jin's earlier concern about disasters leading to wickedness stemmed from her fear that a series of natural disasters would cause the village's funds to be insufficient to feed the hundreds of households, inevitably leading to chaos in the village.
Village Chief Kim continued, "These days, disasters have occurred one after another. I have discussed with the respected elders in the village and we will give everyone some money based on the number of people in their families and the acreage of wheat fields affected by the disaster, so that everyone can have a good New Year."
As soon as these words were spoken, the entire courtyard erupted in a cacophony of voices.
"Well... that's a good thing in a way, but I don't have many family members, so when you think about it, I'm losing out big time."
“I agree with what the village chief said. Many of our poultry have frozen to death, so we should give them some money.”
"Aunt Mu, of course you agreed, you have a lot of family members."
"That's because my son is capable, he gave me several grandsons. You're jealous, so tell your son to work harder tonight."
"you……"
"Stop arguing. The village chief is thinking of everyone. No matter how much, something is better than nothing."
Chief Kimura coughed heavily, and the talking in the courtyard gradually stopped.
"If everyone has no objections, then the subsidy will be 50 coins for adults over the age of sixteen, 10 coins for children, and 3 coins for a pound of wheat per mu of land, plus 4 qian and 50 coins per mu."
"Village chief... this... isn't it a bit too little?"
"That means my pig will get two ounces..."
Village Chief Mu said in a deep voice, "Next spring, the village will build a school and hire teachers. The village has kept accounts of the funds over the years, but for the elderly and children who can afford to eat, such as Lin Huzi and Brother Sun, the village has never used the funds to support them. Our village has about 600 people now, and the annual income from the village is estimated to be four or five taels of silver. Over the past hundred years, we have been stretching every penny we have, and now we have less than 300 taels of silver left. If we give it all to you, the construction of the school will probably have to be postponed again."
Upon hearing this, the villagers of Mujia Village were immediately speechless.
Farmers value literacy. If a family has at least one literate person, they can walk with their backs straight and look very upright.
Otherwise, given what Zhou Wushi did to Zhou Lin, she would have been drowned in the villagers' gossip long ago, and wouldn't be in this situation now, where many families still fawn over her because Zhou Qiang is studying in town.
She was afraid that one day, if Zhou Qiang passed the imperial examination and achieved official rank, he would not be able to benefit from his relationship with Zhou Wushi.
"Then let's do as the village chief says. Even a fly's leg is still meat."
Chief Kimura stroked his beard and glanced at Kinfa. "Kinfa, the rest is up to you."
Mu Genfa nodded emphatically. He had attended school in a neighboring village for two or three years and knew how to read. However, because of his poor academic performance, he was quite self-aware and did not take the path of taking the imperial examinations.
After the village chief returned to his house, Mu Genfa spoke in a loud voice: "Line up, don't rush. Come here and I will write down how many sixteen-year-olds and children you have in your family, and how many acres of wheat fields you have planted. After I verify this in the next few days, I will call you to come and collect your money."
It was cold, and no one wanted to wait, so they all pushed and shoved to the front.
Lin Chunyu brought out a brush, ink, paper and inkstone from the study. Seeing this, he said, "Everyone, don't rush. Take your time, it'll be quick. If you keep pushing like this, you'll only delay everyone."
As he spoke, he called over his second brother's wife and Mu Linsen to help him sort out the order.
Zhou Lin stood behind Mu Lingyun and asked softly, "Is everything alright at home?"
Mu Lingyun nodded gently, "Don't worry, brother, everything is fine. We didn't raise many poultry this year. Although a few froze to death, they were supposed to be slaughtered during the New Year anyway. But since they can't leave the village, I'm afraid the butcher's business won't be able to continue this winter."
"As long as nothing's wrong at home, we can earn money anytime the snow melts."
Mu Lingyun smiled and said, "Si'er and I thought the same thing. I just came from my older brother's place. They all thought it was too cold, so they didn't come. My older brother just told me that the fox fur you sent over a few days ago has been tanned. I'll have Si'er take it to you later."
"Alright, thank you so much, Brother Lingqiao."
Mu Lingyun waved her hand, "We're all family."
As the biting north wind blew by, the villagers, who were lining up to keep accounts, all moved closer together as if by unspoken agreement.
When people are close together, it's not so cold anymore.
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