Although the mountain people were extremely busy, the smiles on their faces never faded.
This kind of busyness is what they have always dreamed of. They are not afraid of being busy, but they are afraid of not having time to be busy even if they want to be busy. That is the most terrible thing.
Because that would mean they have a lot of strength but nowhere to use it, or that using it would be useless, and in the end they would just be doing the bandits a favor, while the bandits would become fat and bloated.
Now it's different. They did put in effort, but they also had hope. They knew that their effort was for themselves, and the harvest would fill their own stomachs.
Of course, paying taxes to the imperial court was a must.
But everyone was willing to hand it over to Lord Pei, and no one would have any objections. Otherwise, wouldn't that be heartless?
Patrol and Inspection Division
The jailer forced the bandits to plant potatoes again, just like he had done.
This time, the bandits were numb. They hardly had time to think about why they had to plant and harvest the same things again just a few months ago. They just mechanically repeated the actions they were doing.
The bandits consoled themselves in despair: "We're all digging anyway, so what difference does it make where we dig? Even if we don't come here to plant this stuff, we'll still be forced to dig in other places, and that'll be even more tiring!"
Pei Han's approach to dealing with this group of scoundrels was very simple, which can be summarized in four words: make the best use of them.
Wherever the mountain roads are rugged, let them pave them; wherever there are problems with the ditches, let them repair them; wherever bridges are needed, let them build them.
Since they spent the first half of their lives doing evil, they should use the second half to accumulate good deeds and do good. If they can contribute to the people, they must do so properly.
As for the idea of trying to escape, that's pure wishful thinking and doesn't exist.
Not to mention that the prisoners were immediately put in shackles upon release, the officers and soldiers of the patrol office were not to be underestimated either; sending these people to work had become a new form of training.
The young soldiers especially loved this job; they were happier watching these scoundrels suffer than watching a play during a holiday.
In the courtyard, Xiao Wei leaped onto the bed, stubbornly trying to move his entire body onto Min Yueqing.
Min Yueqing, both amused and exasperated, reached out and patted its big head. "Xiao Wei, look how heavy you are now! You're taller than Lele when you stand up. Are you trying to flatten me?"
Little Serena is now about eight months old, and her height has reached about 1.3 meters, and her weight is at least 100 pounds.
It was incredibly fierce in the mountains, daring to chase any living creature not much larger than itself. But as soon as it got to Min Yueqing's side, it immediately turned back into that clingy little baby, always hoping that Min Yueqing could hold it like before.
Min Yueqing was caught in this sweet trouble every day, often feeling both annoyed and amused.
Little Wei's attempt to be cute failed, and he even got a tap. Feeling wronged, he took his two front paws off Min Yueqing's legs, lay down beside her legs, and rested his big head affectionately on her lap.
Pei Ji finished her homework and dashed into the room. After seeing the situation inside, she immediately shouted, "Xiao Wei, you've taken over Mother's spot again!"
Xiao Wei remained motionless, not even sparing Pei Ji a glance.
Pei Ji, who was ignored by Wei every day, has now developed a set of coping strategies.
He didn't expect Xiao Wei to move aside on her own, so he went straight forward, quickly took off his shoes, climbed onto the couch, and squeezed into the gap between Min Yueqing and the small table from the other side, grabbing one of her arms as if to assert his ownership.
Min Yueqing initially found it somewhat amusing to hear the little cub refer to Xiao Wei as a person, but before she could even smile, she was firmly pinned to the bed by the cub and the tiger, unable to move an inch.
If the weather were cold, it would be a blessing, but it's only early autumn now, and the weather isn't really cold yet. Min Yueqing felt hot all over, almost sweating.
It's hard to push either one away; they're both my flesh and blood, and it wouldn't be right to push either of them away.
She could only negotiate with the little one: "Lele, loosen your grip a bit, it's too crowded sitting here now, I'll move Xiaowei to the side."
Upon hearing the first half of the sentence, Pei Ji looked reluctant, feeling that his mother was showing favoritism. Only after hearing the last sentence did he readily release his grip on Min Yueqing, looking intently at her, waiting for her to move Xiao Wei away.
Min Yueqing patted Xiao Wei, who was stubbornly refusing to move, and said, "Why don't you move over a bit? Are you pretending you can't hear me again?"
Xiao Wei finally raised its head, looking at Min Yueqing with its clear, bright black-gold eyes, its expression as innocent as could be.
Min Yueqing sighed and tapped its forehead lightly again, then resignedly reached out and put her hands around Xiao Wei's two front legs, picked up its increasingly large body and moved it to the side.
This made the space for the two people and the tiger much more spacious, at least Min Yueqing and Pei Ji could move their arms and legs more freely.
Pei Ji glanced at Xiao Wei triumphantly, as if to say: Even though you rested your head on your mother's lap, your mother moved you away for my sake!
"Madam, I'm back."
Min Yueqing and Pei Ji sat together, each engrossed in a book, until Pei Han spoke up, and they realized it was already late.
Pei Han sees similar heartwarming scenes almost every day when he comes home, and every time he sees them, he still feels a warm glow in his heart.
After leaning against the tatami mat for a long time and being squeezed in the middle, Min Yueqing felt her bones were stiff. As soon as the little one let go, she couldn't help but stretch.
Whether it was contagious or not, Pei Ji, sitting next to her, couldn't help but raise his hand and stretch, and even Xiao Wei was infected, lazily raising his two front paws.
The two men and the tiger had almost identical expressions and movements, which made Pei Han smile.
Seeing that Min Yueqing was about to get off the bed, Pei Han quickly stepped forward to help her, and then picked up Pei Ji with one hand.
"Father, my shoes!" Pei Ji hadn't put on his shoes yet, and he was afraid that Pei Han would forget, so he quickly reminded him.
Pei Han simply wanted to hug his son, and seeing his anxiety, he laughed and said, "Don't worry, I won't forget your shoes."
As she spoke, she squatted down and placed Pei Ji on her lap, then personally put his shoes on for him.
Xiao Wei didn't have this problem. When it saw Min Yueqing get off the bed, it jumped off the bed and then turned back to Min Yueqing's legs.
It was dinnertime, and the family headed towards the dining room.
Shi Tou had already arrived and was helping A Zhu set out the dishes, while silently swallowing his saliva as he looked at the plate of plump white buns on the table.
Time flies, and more than half a year has passed since they arrived in Sanping County. Not only has the food they brought with them been used up, but the food stored in Min Yueqing's space is also about to run out.
Fortunately, the mountain people in Sanping County all planted rice this year, which will provide a considerable amount of grain during the autumn harvest.
With the arrival of autumn, the vegetables in the fields ripened one after another. Recently, a lot of radishes, celery, and cowpeas were harvested. Min Yueqing had an idea and wanted the kitchen to make some steamed buns.
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