Although Chu Heng's life was not eventful, it was also wonderful.
From a slave to a big businessman, and then to the respected Marquis of Renyi, such a life experience is indeed quite legendary and enough to make the people talk about it with relish.
But Chu Heng never forgot that everything he has now is thanks to his elder sister.
If he had not met his elder sister, he and his sister would probably have gone to see their parents long ago.
When he was young, he was carefree and unaware of the sufferings of the world. It was not until he fell into misfortune one night that he realized the darkness and danger of the world.
Slaves without any human rights are even worse than animals.
The better outcome is to be bought and worked like a slave for the rest of your life; the worst outcome is to be buried alive.
On nights when he was too hungry to sleep, he often looked up at the night sky and stared at the bright moon in a daze, his heart full of confusion about the future and life.
He once thought that he must be a good person in the future and atone for the mistakes his father made.
To this day, he has indeed done it.
He donated most of his wealth to build primary schools across the country, giving countless children from ordinary families a chance to change their destiny.
Therefore, he was named "Marquis of Benevolence and Righteousness" by His Majesty the First Emperor.
He has obtained wealth, fame, and status. Logically, he should have no regrets in life.
But Chu Heng still felt confused.
He continued to run his business, traveled all over the country, saw mountains and rivers, and witnessed all kinds of human life, but he still had not found the meaning of life.
Until he accidentally came to a small mountain village.
Because its mountain shape resembles an ox head, it is named Niutou Village. This place is extremely remote and it takes at least three hours to walk to the nearest county town.
The villagers live an isolated life, working from sunrise to sunset, and their lives are poor and hard.
Only after the imperial court distributed high-yield grain seeds and reduced taxes did their lives of hunger improve.
But it is just enough to keep ourselves fed and clothed.
After Chu Heng rested for a while in Niutou Village, he started strolling around the village.
It was noon, and the villagers were still working under the scorching sun. Even the children were herding sheep and cattle on the mountain, which shows how hard their life was.
He sighed secretly as he walked to a hillside.
On the hillside, a five or six-year-old cowherd was lying leisurely with a blade of grass in his mouth. In the distance, a yellow cow could be vaguely seen eating grass.
Chu Heng couldn't help but walk forward and joked with a smile.
"Little kid, aren't you afraid that the cow will run away if you slack off here?"
The cowherd boy looked at the stranger warily, and when he saw that he had no ill intentions, he answered lazily.
"No, no, I just whistle and my dog will come back."
Perhaps it was the child's desire to show off, he spit out the grass leaves, pouted his lips, and whistled loudly.
The next moment, the yellow cow in the distance raised its head and walked slowly towards this side, obviously having been trained for a long time.
Seeing this, Chu Heng raised his eyebrows, smiled heartily and gave a compliment.
"Yes, quite clever."
He looked at the cowherd boy's big, black eyes that were full of cleverness, and suddenly felt a sense of appreciation for his talent.
"You are so smart, why don't you go to school in the county?"
"go to school?"
"I'm going to school, so there's no one to herd the cattle!"
"Will you also herd cattle when you grow up?"
"No."
"When I grow up, I will marry a wife and have a baby. I will farm and the baby will herd cattle."
“…”
Chu Heng looked at the child's self-righteous expression, and a feeling of powerlessness instantly came over him.
Isn’t it a tragedy that generation after generation of cattle herding repeats the endless cycle?
They could clearly study, change their fate, and live a better life, but they still trapped themselves in the mountains.
But is this their fault?
It doesn’t seem so.
Harsh conditions, conservative thinking and the unknown are the mountains that stand in their way.
If they were to cross it on their own, it would probably take several generations of effort.
But if he could help, perhaps the cowherd boy in front of him would have a different life.
Thinking of this, a seed seemed to be quietly planted in Chu Heng's heart.
He took out a lollipop from his pocket, unwrapped it, and waved it in front of the cowherd boy.
"Want to eat?"
"I want to eat!"
The cowherd boy stared at the snow-white sugar ball, and the rich sweet fragrance made him drool.
Chu Heng raised the corner of his mouth in a playful arc, and spoke slowly under the child's eager gaze.
“There are no free lollipops in the world.”
"But I don't have any money..."
"Then I'll have to eat it myself."
"Big brother, can you give me a lick? Just one!"
The cowherd boy finally got to eat the sweet lollipop.
As he slurped the candy ball, he mumbled his ambitions.
"I must become a rich man in the future so that I can have endless lollipops!"
"Then study hard. If you can't even read an account book, you can't become a rich man."
"Reading is delicious...is it fun?"
"Yeah, there will be endless amounts of stir-fried bamboo shoots and pork."
"Meat?! I haven't eaten meat in a long time... slurp~"
“…”
"Big brother, I want to go to school! I want to eat meat!! I want to be rich!!!"
The tender voices of children echoed on the hillside, and a ray of hope appeared in the cowherd boy's dark eyes.
One year later.
A primary school has sprung up in Niutou Village.
Solid and sturdy buildings, bright classrooms, spacious playgrounds, neatly arranged desks and chairs, brand new books, beautiful school uniforms...
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