"Moreover, when my eldest brother passed away, it was Uncle Tiezhu who helped with the encoffining. At that time, only Sanpao's family was willing to lend us things!"
After Zhou Xiaocang recounted the story of Li Sanpao's family, Lin Xue understood the situation.
"Alright, I know what to do next! I'll hand over our land to Li Sanpao's family to manage, give them 30% of the profits, and take the rest to the county town!"
"I will ask Li Sanpao's family to take care of our house. When you brothers grow up, whoever wants to come home and inherit the family business will get the house and land!"
"However, we probably won't go back to that village, but I don't want to let the villagers benefit from our house and land, so I will keep these things and go back to take a look from time to time!"
Lin Xue explained her plans to Zhou Xiaocang in detail, since those things all belonged to the Zhou siblings.
No decision should be made without considering the children's feelings.
"Sister-in-law, we've already taken good care of this season's harvest, so I have no objection to giving you 30%. But is giving you only 30% of the future harvests a bit too little?"
Zhou Xiaocang knew how hard farming was; it was a job that required working from dawn till dusk, and the harvest was only so little.
They only give 30% of the harvest. Would Li Sanpao's family agree to help them farm?
"You don't understand, do you? You should know that I'm working for the government now, and I'm someone who serves the magistrate's wife!"
"Li Sanpao's family farms for us. Even if we don't give them 30% or a single cent, they'll still be happy to work for us!"
Lin Xue patted Zhou Xiaocang on the shoulder. This child had always lived in the village and had no idea how treacherous the world was.
I don't understand the intricacies of this situation, no wonder I felt she gave too little.
"Why is that? Who would willingly do unpaid work for someone else?"
Zhou Xiaocang couldn't understand why his sister-in-law said that even if they didn't give anything, Li Sanpao's family would still be willing to work for them.
Li Sanpao's family isn't stupid. Why would he be willing to do something that doesn't bring him any benefits?
"Didn't I say that because I work in the county government office, and he works for our family, we've become connected? If anyone tries to bully them again, as long as they mention my name, no one will dare to bully them anymore!"
"Even if he were to use my name to bully others, they might not dare to take it to the authorities. Even the village chief would most likely side with Li Sanpao's family!"
"Although the villagers may not know the law, they are not stupid. They know who they can bully and who they should not mess with!"
"That's because our Great Yun Dynasty is vast and sparsely populated, and officials simply can't manage so many remote mountains and villages, which is why the village chiefs seem to have so much power!"
"Even if the village chief is domineering, he has no choice but to back down when he clashes with the government. That's the power of social status!"
"The longer you stay in this county, the more you'll understand."
"I still need to prepare provisions for tomorrow's journey. I'm planning to go hunting a couple of animals in the woods outside the city. Do you want to come with me?"
Lin Xue talked to Zhou Xiaocang a lot, saying that if these children had someone patiently to teach them, they could always grow up on their own.
"If we leave, what will happen to our younger siblings?"
Zhou Xiaocang really wanted to learn how to hunt from Lin Xue, but he was worried about his younger siblings at home.
"Have them stay home and clean the house thoroughly, inside and out, and wipe the tables, chairs, and benches clean with a rag!"
"The back gate of the county government is right outside the door. What's there to be afraid of? If we encounter any danger, we'll just run into the county government. We have the county magistrate as our backer, so no one will bother us!"
Zhou Xiaocang agreed, as their current residence was located behind the county government office and directly opposite the main gate.
It only took a few steps to get to the county government office, so what's there to be afraid of?
So he found himself a basket, which contained all the things they had carried back yesterday. After telling his younger siblings to keep the gate closed and not to go out unnecessarily, he followed Lin Xue out of the city.
Because she brought Zhou Xiaocang along, Lin Xue didn't go very fast this time. Instead of taking the same route as last night, she took a different route deeper into the forest.
Along the way, Lin Xue also taught Zhou Xiaocang how to identify where there was prey, and asked him to look for the traces left by the prey, such as footprints and hair.
Knowledge such as how to determine direction based on the growth of trees, how to find water sources by looking at the roots of large trees, and what to do if you get lost in the forest.
They walked for more than an hour before they spotted a goat grazing ahead.
As soon as their eyes lit up, they heard a wild boar grunting and nudging a big tree on the other side.
"If we catch one of these two prey, it will definitely scare the other away. Xiao Cang, do you want to eat goat or wild boar?"
Lin Xue glanced at the two prey in opposite directions, then looked at Zhou Xiaocang and asked for his opinion.
"Sister-in-law, that wild boar wasn't very big; it looked about the same size as this goat. You can always buy pork in the city for a little money, but goat meat is much harder to find!"
He had eaten pork a few times before, and his older brother would always bring back a few ounces of it whenever he went out to earn money.
However, Zhou Xiaocang had never eaten mutton before in his life. Not only had he never eaten it, but his younger siblings had never eaten it either.
Faced with two choices, Zhou Xiaocang would definitely want to catch the goat he had never eaten before.
"Alright, I won't take you with me on this first hunt. I'll let you go after you've had more time to learn!"
"You stand here with this sickle and don't move. If there's any danger, climb the tree. I'll go catch that goat!"
After giving Zhou Xiaocang some instructions, Lin Xue darted away with a light step.
In Zhou Xiaocang's incredulous gaze, Lin Xue's speed was so fast that it left afterimages.
Although she only used very ordinary light-foot skills, in the eyes of Zhou Xiaocang, a mountain child with little knowledge, it was an extremely powerful martial art.
Just as the goat realized something was wrong and tried to escape, Lin Xue grabbed its horns.
At first, the goat tried to resist, jumping around on its hind legs and using its two long horns to push Lin Xue down.
But Lin Xue's hands seemed to have the strength of a thousand pounds, and the goat in her hands was like a toy, unable to make the slightest ripple.
"Xiao Cang, bring the rope over. Let's lead the goat back. It's getting late. I'll bring you back to hunt a few more animals when we're less busy in a few days!"
When the goat had finished its antics, Lin Xue asked Zhou Xiaocang to bring over the rope they had brought. She tied the goat up in a special noose and then led it towards the city gate.
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