Chapter 788 Young General vs. Rich Lady 91
At noon, the aroma of food wafted over the ridges of the fields.
Those with better conditions could eat one or two pieces of meat, and those with worse conditions could at least drink rice porridge and eat some pickled vegetables.
Erya came over with a lunch box, which contained fragrant rice, scrambled eggs with carrots, and stir-fried cabbage. It was not that she couldn't afford meat, but that Erya was young and couldn't cook anything too complicated.
The mother and daughter sat on the edge of the field and ate happily, while others gathered in groups of three or four to chat.
"It's much easier to water now. After a few rains, there's water in the nearby ditches. In the past, even when the harvest was good, we all had to rush to the creek in the west to fetch water. We quarreled and ended up fighting. I still have a scar on my head now."
"You are still digging up old scores. Aren't we all in a hurry to irrigate the water? We are from the same village. I didn't mean it. But now it's really good. The major general took the initiative to dig some ditches and small ponds for water storage, so it's much more convenient to use water."
"Don't be afraid if there's no water, the gods will give us rain. In the past, we worried that God wouldn't give us food to eat, and this year the drought is particularly severe. The young general is a man of great fortune, even God is on his side!"
"In the past, the young general didn't care about these things. He only cared about fighting. I think the young general manages us very well. We have food, drink and land to farm. It's much better than the county magistrate managing us!"
"I heard that these seeds can produce hundreds or even thousands of kilograms per mu! Even if they can only produce 200 kilograms, my family won't have to worry about going hungry."
"The things God gives are different. They are so big. I guess the crops we grow are different. But the yields are both high. The things God gives must be good things."
Anyway, after all, they all feel that they are living a good life now, and their hearts and eyes are full of gratitude to the gods, the major general, and the Huo family army.
All the new recruits who joined the Huo family army were beaming with joy.
After a quick meal, the people did not rest but immediately went back to work. They wished they could plant more land so that after paying a little tax, the rest would be theirs. Naturally, the more the better.
Zhao Hei came to help again. He was black when he was born, so he got this nickname.
Li Xiujiu was very embarrassed. She wanted to refuse but couldn't resist Zhao Hei's enthusiasm. She could only think of giving Zhao Hei more gifts to thank him.
A middle-aged man dressed in silk came with several servants. He was originally very hungry and skinny, but now Pingyang City was prosperous and he had some gold, silver and jewelry, so he could naturally exchange them for some food. As a result, he ate so much that his stomach became bloated and his belly became fatter.
"You are such an ungrateful person! The master raised you up, but you are such an ungrateful person. You have an iron plow, but instead of using it to honor the master and plow the land for him, you help others plow the land!"
Zhao Hei rolled his eyes. "The Li family's plow here has nothing to do with me. Even if my family has a plow, a hoe, and a shovel, why should I help you with the work?"
"I am a free man now. I joined the Huo family army and am no longer your slave. Don't think I don't know that the Huo family army sent you food, which is like buying me. However, General Huo does not need slaves to serve him. He only wants people who join the army."
"We brothers, although not related by blood, joined the army together, fought together, and established our own household together. We are a family. We were originally free people, but you set up a trap to harm others. You forced my father to death, seized our house and land, and forced my mother and I to sell ourselves into slavery. My mother died of overwork. Get out of here! Don't force me to do anything!"
Master Liu snorted coldly, "How can such a small amount of food be enough to buy a slave? Huo Xiao is clearly forcing the purchase and sale! Many slaves from various families have been robbed, and he is bullying others by taking advantage of his power!"
"Forget it, sir. I am broad-minded and will not argue with you. I will give you money and you sell me the farm tools."
Master Liu threw down a bag of copper coins proudly, "These farm tools are all given to you for free, just go get them again, and you can get a bag of money for free by selling them to me, how great."
Zhao Hei said sternly: "No sale! Get out of here!"
In a rage, Master Liu ordered his servants to come down and grab the iron plow.
Zhao Hei was so angry that he wanted to fight them to the death, but Li Xiujiu was quick-witted and held him tightly.
After Master Liu snatched the iron plow, he became more and more arrogant and even snatched the small hoe from Erya's hand. When he saw some farm tools on the ridge of the field, he didn't care who they belonged to and just snatched them away without saying a word.
When some people came back with water, their farm tools were gone. Some people were sowing seeds in the fields and watched helplessly as their farm tools were taken away.
Zhao Hei looked guilty, "It's all my fault. Your iron plow was stolen. I'm giving you my plow. Don't worry, I'll get your things back even if it costs me my life."
Li Xiujiu had never seen such a stupid man. He was so stubborn and could not think flexibly.
"There's no need to fight to the death. Let's go and file a complaint. Stealing ironware is a serious crime. Let Minister Yan deal with them!"
Several people whose farm tools had been stolen gathered together and happened to meet Yan Changfeng who was coming over for inspection. They all started talking about what had happened.
"That Mr. Liu has a big family and a lot of wealth. He left the seeds. I guess he was reluctant to pay one-tenth of the tax, so he refused to use the seeds given by the gods. Anyway, he is very stingy!"
"If you don't use the seeds of the gods, you naturally can't get the farm tools. When he saw us using them, he came to steal them. It's not the first time he has done this. He harmed the Heizi family. He robbed their house and land, and in the end, even the people became his slaves."
"He thought it was still the time when the county magistrate was in office. He was allowed to do whatever he wanted. He had never received any ironware before, so he probably didn't know that robbing ironware was a serious crime, even more serious than robbing military rations!"
Yan Changfeng has made three major moves since he took office. Pingyang City is peaceful now, and he finally encounters a major case. Naturally, he is very excited and wants to deal with this Mr. Liu properly.
He immediately took thirty guards and headed straight for the Liu family compound.
Thirty guards may not sound like a lot, but they are all equipped with swords, bows and crossbows, which is more than enough to deal with a local tyrant who exploits the people.
Yan Changfeng arrested the man directly. He didn't know anything until he checked. He was shocked when he checked.
The next morning, he took the file to Huo Xiao to ask for credit.
"Just by arresting a worthless master without any official title, we have gained so many fields, and they are all the best land in Pingyang City, very flat. There are also so many slaves, some of whom helped the tyrant and were sent to the army to do hard labor, but most of them can still serve as soldiers, so we have more manpower."
"The deceased county magistrate was not in Pingyang City for long. He just amassed wealth and received a lot of gold, silver and jewelry as tributes. He did not have much land and servants. The big money belonged to the gentry who had been entrenched for many years!"
Huo Xiao also knew that these people had great wealth and power, but he was a general and was always busy fighting wars, so he really couldn't think about these little things for a while.
"Very good. I'll give you the land and the people to manage. I'll also assign you some more people. You can do whatever you want."
"Anyway, I only have one request. The more food the better, and the more people who join the army the better. But the people should not be injured or forced to join the army. It's not good to send them to the battlefield unwillingly."
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