90 Famine Era 5
Turning point
After thinking for a few seconds, Yan Lan decided to tell the truth.
"It records a place where the people are simple and honest, and the leaders are benevolent and generous. They not only properly resettled the refugees, but also distributed land. Furthermore, during the first three years of the protection period, they were exempt from taxes, and after that, the tax rate was only one-thirtieth."
Old Lady Wang had been around land all her life and was particularly sensitive to fields. She couldn't help but scream when she heard this: "What? Outsiders are getting free land too? And three years of tax exemption?"
Aunt Wang added excitedly, "Mom, after three years it's not exempted, but it's only one-thirty percent, not even ten percent!"
Aunt Wang was also counting on her fingers: "Before, one mu of our land could yield 50 dan of grain, and we had to give 20 dan to the court. Now, one mu of land has to pay... pay..."
“Less than 2 stone!”
Old Mrs. Wang responded, and she suddenly felt her eyes a little moist. For farmers like them, the land is their roots!
She had been exploited all her life and had never had enough to eat. She had never been willing to eat the thirty stone of grain she earned after a year of hard work, as she had to exchange it all for coarse grains. But now she was told that she could live a good life.
But she had lived several decades longer than her younger generations, and after a moment of excitement, she suddenly calmed down.
"Miss Yan, this is a lie, right? Where in the world is there such a good place?"
Aunt Wang also thought clearly about the implications. "Yes, I think mother is right. Look at our imperial court. They're so overburdened with taxes and levies that they're practically starving you to the bone. How could they give you land for free without collecting any taxes? Miss Yan, what do you think?"
"In my opinion, this is most likely true."
Yan Lan paused for a moment and handed the map to them for study.
"Look at the map. This place is in a low-lying basin, surrounded by high mountains on all sides. It's normal that we haven't heard of it."
I know they won't believe it easily. After all, this place is too beautiful for this dynasty with frequent famines and wars, so beautiful that it is almost unrealistic.
So she didn't rush them, but slowly said, "But I still respect your opinions. If you don't want to go, we can go south as planned. But this place is really good, and more and more people will know about it. The sooner you go, the better the benefits you can enjoy."
Old Lady Wang and her two daughters-in-law looked at each other for a few seconds. Yan Lan saw some relaxation in their eyes. The corners of her mouth curled up unconsciously, and she turned to look at Mi Zhou, who had been neglected for a long time.
"Oh, this rice porridge is completely cold. Let's eat first and think about it slowly. There's no rush."
But this is such a big deal, how can I not be anxious!
Old Lady Wang and a few others were holding wooden bowls and drinking porridge intermittently. The wild rabbit meat that they usually chewed slowly and tasted carefully for several times before swallowing was now chewed whole. The only ones who still had the appetite to eat were Yan Lan and the two younger girls.
The group had their meal and sat under the shade of a tree to rest.
Old Lady Wang glanced at Yan Lan several times, wanting to say something but stopping herself from speaking again. When she was about to stand up and leave again, she casually walked over to Yan Lan and hesitated for a while before speaking.
"Miss Yan, my two daughters-in-law and I have thought about it and feel that you are right. Let's go to the place you mentioned first. If it is true, then we will make a profit. If it is not true, we will not lose anything. Anyway, I don't have much money on me, so I can't cheat you. If it doesn't work, we can go to another place."
Yan Lan had already expected such an outcome. Although she didn't show it on her face, she felt relieved inside, as she was one step closer to her goal.
"Okay, then we'll change our route."
She took out the map again, which contained a very detailed route map. This time, they might pass by a small village.
But it was a famine year, and the current situation in the village was unknown. Besides, there were three little girls in the team, so they decided not to stop in the village and pass through quickly.
This was originally their plan, but that night when they were walking on a path not far from the village, a little boy suddenly emerged from the dark woods and ran head-on into Yan Lan and her group who were on their way with flashlights.
The little boy was also surprised and even a little scared. He didn't even see the person's face, so he turned around and rushed back into the woods.
When encountering such a situation, most people would step forward to ask, and Yan Lan was no exception.
She followed the little boy into the woods, shouting, "Hey, don't run!"
The little boy seemed to be frightened by Yan Lan's words. Not only did he not stop, but he even ran faster, as if there was a flood or a beast behind him.
Am I really that terrible? Yan Lan was complaining in her heart when there was a "thump" sound in front of her, followed by the sound of a heavy object falling to the ground and a slight cry of pain.
Yan Lan couldn't help but chuckle. She quickly stepped forward and grabbed the staggering little boy, asking, "Why did you run away when you saw us?"
He was running too fast before and didn't even see the person's face clearly. Now someone grabbed the collar and Xiao Yongzi finally had time to see clearly the person he met on the trail.
There were young girls, old ladies and little girls in this group of people. During the famine, those little girls were not only not sold, but their faces were faintly shiny with oil, which showed that they had eaten meat recently.
He rubbed his sore butt and said, "I thought those bandits were back again."
"Bandits?"
Later, Xiao Yongzi talked about how a group of bandits came to their village, took away everything they could take away, and burned everything they couldn't take away. In the end, they wanted to dig a hole and bury them alive. Fortunately, a group of people came behind and drove the bandits away.
"Are you saying that two people in this group have strange hairstyles?" Yan Lan grasped the key point.
"Yeah, their temperament is obviously different from ours. Even though they look weird, they are really good people!"
Xiao Yongzi emphasized this sentence and continued,
"Though those two wore the same linen clothes as us, they had short haircuts that were hard to describe. Hmm... they looked very smart and neat."
Yan Lan frowned. When she entered the game, except for the change of clothes, her hairstyle and appearance were the same as before. The same was probably true for the others, so Xiao Yongzi was likely to meet contestants like herself.
So she asked, "Can we go back with you?"
Xiao Yongzi suddenly became alert, and he looked at the smiling sister opposite him with renewed scrutiny.
"Look, it's already so late. We've been traveling all day and our feet are blistered. Especially these little girls, they didn't even stop to rest in this hot weather. If they camp out in this deep forest at night, who knows what bad guys they might run into."
Seeing the hesitation on Xiao Yongzi's face, Yan Lan continued to work hard.
"We're not living here for free. Look at the wooden cart those two aunts are pushing. It contains our food reserves. As a reward, we can give you a pound of rice and some meat."
Aunt Wang and Aunt Wang II also followed Yan Lan's words. One of them opened the cloth bag on the cart to reveal the white rice inside, and the other took out a piece of smoked bacon from the big backpack.
Xiao Yongzi's eyes suddenly lit up, and his Adam's apple slid up and down involuntarily. Those bandits stole, killed, and robbed for money and food. Now that this group of people had so much food in their hands, they should not harm them for a bite of food.
The image of a bare, leaky house flashed through Xiao Yongzi's mind, and he felt relieved. Those who are barefoot are not afraid of those who wear shoes. No matter what the outcome is, the most important thing to do now is to fill his stomach.
He pretended to be embarrassed for a few seconds before slowly saying, "Well, I can take you there, but most of the houses in the village have been burned down, and there are only a few that can be lived in. I hope you don't mind."
Yan Lan shook her head repeatedly: "Don't mind, don't mind. We are very grateful to have a place to stay."
Xiao Yongzi nodded and began to lead the way.
This place is not far from the village, and it takes about a quarter of an hour to reach the village entrance.
Although it was night, the moonlight and Yan Lan's flashlight illuminated the view, and the scenes on both sides were clearly visible.
The small village was laid out in strips. The original wooden houses had been burned down to bare wooden piles, and there was still a thick smell of smoke in the air.
As I walked through the village, everything was so quiet that I didn't see anyone.
Xiao Yongzi also saw their doubts and took the initiative to answer: "After being rescued by those kind people, everyone in the village followed them to escape."
"Then why didn't you go?"
Thinking of this, Xiao Yongzi sighed and said, "My grandfather accidentally injured his foot while fighting with bandits. The kind-hearted people were in a hurry and had to leave that day, so we are delayed here because of our inconvenience in walking."
Then, he was heard muttering quietly, "After so many days, I don't know where they are. I wonder if I can catch up with them."
While they were talking, they had reached the end of the village, where there were two dilapidated courtyards.
Xiao Yongzi led them to one of the houses and scratched his head. "Because it's far away, only ours and our neighbor's house were spared from the fire. Our house is small and there are no extra rooms. We can only trouble you to rest here."
They were all shabby thatched huts, and it made no difference where they lived. Yan Lan nodded and entered the yard with several people from the Wang family.
After allocating the accommodation, she turned around and took out a portion of food that she had promised her before from the cart and handed it to Xiao Yongzi.
The food felt heavy in his hands. Xiao Yongzi sniffed hard, and the overbearing smell of bacon rushed into his nose, causing his salivary glands to secrete liquid unconsciously.
He was obviously very excited. After hurriedly thanking her and giving her some instructions, he ran to the next yard, calling out loudly as he ran.
"Grandpa, Grandpa, I found some food! Yes, rice! And bacon!"
"Oh, Grandpa, I really didn't steal it! I exchanged it for it. If you don't believe me, just ask..."
Yan Lan stood at the gate of the courtyard and couldn't help but laugh softly when she heard the conversation between the grandfather and grandson.
It's getting late now, and there weren't many entertainment activities in ancient times. I haven't had a good rest after traveling through the deep mountains and forests for so many days. Now I can finally lie down.
At this moment, Wang Damei brought a wooden basin filled with the little water left in the vat after the family left. "Master, please wash yourself up before going to bed."
There wasn't much water, so she simply washed her body with a towel.
The weather is hot, and cold water can soothe the heat on your body and wipe away the dust that has not been washed off for many days.
Lying on the simple wooden bed in a fresh outfit, Yan Lan felt in a very good mood. Accompanied by the moonlight that came into the room, she fell into a deep sleep.
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