She was terrified, but her husband still wanted to continue strolling around the courtyard. He really needed to be taught a lesson!
Huang Lao Er had never slacked off in his training, and his skin and flesh were already thick and tough. He didn't take Xie Shi's little bit of strength seriously at all. After chuckling, he picked up the turnip snake and said, "Let's go, let's go down the mountain."
Seeing this, Xie's eyes shrank back, and she quickly took a few steps back. Jiang Nuan also quietly slowed down her pace, widening the distance between the two.
Seeing this, Huang Xiaosan touched his nose and said, "It's not poisonous, so why are you all afraid of it?"
Jiang Nuan didn't want to talk to him and simply turned her head to the side.
Jin swallowed hard, then asked, looking aggrieved, "Can't I be afraid if it's not poisonous?"
The thought of a green snake stretching its neck, flicking its tongue, and hissing makes my scalp tingle.
Huang Xiaosan wanted to retort, but looking at his wife's reddened eyes, he silently swallowed all the words he was about to say.
But in my heart, I still see the turnip snake as a meat dish.
The village is shaped like the Chinese character "凹" (U). Only a row of houses was built in the very middle for the servants who managed the village. The houses were very simple and could be seen from one end to the other at a glance.
Before going up the mountain, the group made a special trip to check and found that the Jin family's servants had already left and the house was empty. But when they came down the mountain, they found it crowded with people.
“Mother,” Huang Lao Er said, pointing ahead, “there are so many people.”
“Judging from their clothes,” Jiang Chao squinted, “they look a bit like people who work in the fields.”
"Let's go take a look first."
After saying that, Jiang Nuan took the lead and walked forward.
Just as I reached the door, I saw a crowd approaching. An elderly man in a patched blue linen robe greeted everyone, shouting, "The boss is here! The boss is here!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a group of people knelt down with a thud.
"What are you doing?" Jiang Nuan's expression changed drastically. "Get up quickly, let's talk this out."
"Master, this old man is shamelessly taking advantage of his age to ask you for a favor: please don't take the land back. We'll accept any rent increase."
"You all get up first, let's talk this over properly."
"If you don't agree, we'll kneel here until we die and never get up."
“If you don’t get up, then go rent someone else’s land,” Jiang Nuan said coldly. “Even if you kneel until you die, I will not agree.”
Upon hearing this, the old man's expression changed several times before he finally stood up sensibly and called out to those behind him, "Get up, we'll talk about it later."
Hearing the old man's implied meaning, Jiang Nuan's eyes flickered for a moment, then she lowered her eyes and asked, "Tell me the situation first. How much land did you rent? How much rent did you pay?"
“Master,” the old man said, not daring to hide anything for fear of angering Jiang Nuan, “our sixteen households have rented a total of two hundred acres from the Jin family, paying them sixty percent of the rent.”
“Two hundred mu,” Jiang Nuan thought for a moment, then continued to ask, “What did you plant on all of them?”
"The land here is all fertile farmland. We grow rice in the paddy fields and wheat in the dry land. In the autumn, we switch to soybeans." The old man glanced at Jiang Nuan, then quickly lowered his head and continued, "The land is for the owner's own use. Besides what you see here, they also grow some fruits and vegetables for their own consumption."
"Could you rent a smaller amount of land?"
"Please have mercy, sir, we can't reduce it," the old man said with red eyes. "We have little land, and if the harvest is bad, it's not enough to pay taxes. Our whole family depends on renting land to make a living."
Upon hearing this, the Huang brothers exchanged a glance, somewhat incredulous. "Not even enough tax grain? Really?"
Even if his family is down on their luck, it's never this bad!
“It’s true,” the old man said, pointing to the people behind him. “If you don’t believe me, young master, you can ask them.”
“That’s really how it is,” a dark-skinned man explained with a bitter face. “We people have little land, only three or four acres per family, and we are also small and weak, making us the easiest to bully. When it’s harvest time, they use small measures while we use large measures, and we have to be the best. Often, we work hard all year and still can’t pay the taxes.”
"Four mu of land?" Huang Xiaosan asked, frowning. "How many people are in your family?"
"Six people, including the father and mother, and two boys."
"Can't we clear the land?"
"It's impossible to open them. Our village chief is not as good as the village chief. The land that could be opened has already been opened. The rest are at the foot of the mountain. Opening them won't help. They're always being damaged by wild animals coming down the mountain. We can't harvest the crops and we'll have to lose our seeds."
“This happens when there are a lot of people in the village,” Jiang Chao said, not at all surprised. “Several households in Jiangjiazhuang are like this.”
"Master, please, give me a way out."
If they don't rent land, they can't pay taxes. Even if they sell land, it will only alleviate the problem for two or three years. This short-sighted approach will only bankrupt the small-scale farming economy and turn them into vagrants. Vagrants are unprotected and it is difficult for them to live a stable life.
The consequences are too severe; no one is willing to bear them.
Therefore, even knowing that their actions would anger Jiang Nuan, no one was willing to give up.
Jiang Nuan thought Huangjiakou was poor, but she didn't expect it to be quite wealthy.
Originally, Jiang Nuan hadn't planned to take the land back. After a little consideration, she agreed, "I can continue to rent it to you, but let me make it clear from the beginning: do whatever I tell you to do, and don't delay things."
"Master," the old man asked tentatively, "what do you want us to do?"
"After a while, I will get a batch of fish fry and raise them in the rice paddies."
"How can that be?" the old man exclaimed excitedly. "If the seedlings are damaged, how will we harvest the crops?"
"Don't worry about these things, just do as I say," Jiang Nuan added after thinking for a moment. "From now on, just give us 40% of the rent. As long as you listen to me, no matter what problems arise, even if we get nothing, I will still give you the 60% that you are entitled to."
Upon hearing this, the old man rubbed his eyes, somewhat incredulous, "Really?"
Not only has the rent decreased, but it also guarantees a stable income regardless of drought or flood?
“Of course it’s true,” Jiang Nuan said seriously, “provided you do as I say.”
Since it's her own land, she should follow her own plans. She doesn't have the time to explain everything to everyone. If people don't want to rent it, they can simply choose not to.
Upon hearing this, the old man hesitated for a moment, then stammered, "Could we... draw up a contract?"
“Of course,” Jiang Nuan said in a good mood, “with the contract in place, everyone can rest assured.”
Jiang Nuan was not angry because of the old man's distrust.
Putting aside the fact that we've only just met and have no prior acquaintance, many of the things she does go against common sense. If someone doesn't follow the rules, there's no need to show leniency; signing a contract is the best thing for everyone.
"Thank you, boss. Thank you, boss."
The old man was about to kneel down again.
Madam Xie frowned and spoke up to dissuade them, "My mother doesn't like people kneeling to speak to her, so don't upset her."
"It's my fault, sir," the old man said obediently, standing up and rubbing his stiff legs. "Don't misunderstand, I was just too excited."
“It’s alright, it’s settled then,” Jiang Nuan waved her hand. “You all go back first and do what you need to do. Bring the contract over tomorrow and put your fingerprints on it, and that’s it. There’s nothing to be afraid of. Just follow the rules. As long as you do what I say, you won’t be short of the grain you’re entitled to.”
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