Chapter 7: From the Same Root
"Village chief, I have one more thing to ask you." Su Ying said again.
"Madam, please speak."
"Which field is ours?"
"Any piece of wasteland, as long as it's wasteland, will belong to whoever reclaims it!" said the village chief, pointing to the surrounding area.
Apart from the mountains, there are not many crops on the plains, and even fewer that form continuous plots.
With backward production tools and low productivity, land reclamation is not an easy task.
Just growing food from one's own fields requires a lot of manpower and material resources. One can only reclaim land when one has spare time and energy.
Most of the reclaimed land is barren and poor, and still needs to be maintained.
The crops were not fertile, the harvest was not high, and there was not much energy to reclaim the land. Life was hard and they could barely make ends meet.
"Are there any oxen or plows in the village?"
"Yes, but not much. Several families bought it together. In half a month, it will be time to sow winter wheat. You..." the village chief said in embarrassment.
Hearing this, Su Bucheng looked worried, and his words that he wanted to borrow money were blocked.
The time for sowing is what matters. Who would be willing to lend out their oxen and plows before they finish sowing their own crops?
If several families buy the oxen together, it means that the oxen will be very tired during the busy farming season, and people will be less willing to lend them. Oxen are the most important production tools for farmers.
What's more, my family is new here and we have no connections with anyone. We are also reclaiming wasteland, which is even more difficult.
I can only dig it slowly with a hoe.
Isn’t this how these people got here? They bought the oxen and plows later when they had some savings.
The village chief has done all the help he can, and the rest depends on yourself.
"Don't go into the mountains alone! Wait for my news!" The village chief repeatedly reminded before leaving.
"I know! Thank you, Village Chief!" Su Bucheng thanked him profusely.
"Brother, do you want to go into the mountains?" asked the second and third Su brothers.
Over the years, it has always been the eldest brother who makes the decisions.
The second Su worked in the Ministry of Works, serving as the ninth-rank official, and the third Su worked in the Ministry of Agriculture, serving as the eighth-rank official in the Taicang Office.
The two brothers did not have any great abilities and did not hold high official positions, but they were obedient and had strong execution abilities. They were harmonious at home and in the officialdom and had good relationships with others.
"Well, it's autumn now. Let's see if we can get some mountain products. We can't let mother and children eat porridge every meal." Su Bucheng nodded.
"Is it safe in the mountains? What happened last night! Who from our family went there?" Su Lao Er looked at his brother, then at his frail nephews and nieces.
Except for the three brothers, none of the nephews and nieces look strong. They all have weak bodies. Wouldn't it be a waste to die if they went into the mountains?
"Bo Yan, A Ying and I are enough, you guys stay at home." Su Bucheng patted his second brother's shoulder.
"That won't work! Ah Ying is a skinny girl, and she's not fully recovered to begin with. What can she do there?
"You take Boyan and Aying, why don't I take Shiyan and Chenyan?" Su Laoer argued.
"Second brother, I'll take Bingyan with you." Su Laosan also said, "Big brother, you stay at home. You still have to take care of the old and young."
"Alright, don't argue with me!" Su Bucheng decided, "You are all implicated because of me!"
"What are you talking about, big brother? What's the point of being implicated or not? We are all from the same roots, we share happiness and difficulties together!"
Su Laosan said sullenly, he hated hearing his eldest brother say this the most, it was too distant.
"Sanlang, you are still the same as when you were a kid!" Su Bucheng looked at his brother who was in his thirties with love, with a smile in his eyes.
The three brothers have been close since childhood and all love reading.
The most promising one is the eldest brother Su Bucheng, who participated in the imperial examination of the previous dynasty. Although he was not selected, he was favored by the Du family.
Not only did he recommend him to be the county magistrate, he also married the daughter of the Du family to him.
Although he was only a ninth-rank official, he was still an official.
When the Xin Dynasty was first established, the court lacked grassroots officials. Su Bucheng asked someone to recommend his two younger brothers, who successively got positions in the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Agriculture.
Su Bucheng himself also became the magistrate of Chang'an County. Similarly, county magistrates had different ranks, and the magistrate of Chang'an County was of the fifth rank.
Unfortunately, everything has become a thing of the past, and now they are fugitives!
"Second uncle, third uncle, don't argue. This time we are mainly going to explore the way and understand the situation. There is no need to argue. You will have plenty of opportunities to go into the mountains in the future." Su Ying advised.
"Aying, what are you going to do? If you encounter a ferocious beast, you won't be able to escape! It's better not to go." Su Laoer frowned.
It's a pity that my niece is a girl and will be confined to the boudoir in the future. If she were a boy, he would definitely achieve great things. It's a pity that such talent is wasted.
"Don't worry, Second Uncle! When I'm escaping, I will definitely run as fast as I can!" Su Ying said with a smile, "I won't be a drag."
"Hey, Second Uncle can't argue with you!" Seeing that his brother didn't object, Su Laoer said helplessly.
"Anyway, be extremely careful when you get there! If there really isn't anything there, don't force it, and don't go too deep."
"Second brother, let's go and cut bamboo! Make bamboo beds and weave some baskets and backpacks!" Su Laosan picked up the machete and left.
The family is settled, and it's time to buy some appliances.
"Uncle San, let's go too!" The teenagers couldn't sit still and went to join in the fun.
Su Zhaoyan and Su Quanyan also went, each led by their own father.
"Sister, let's go and take a look too!" Xiaotao pulled her sister, looking eagerly.
Su Bucheng carried a hoe to a corner of the yard to hoe the land, tidy it up and plant some vegetables.
"Let's go! Come, let sister carry me!" Su Ying squatted down. Xiaotao was the youngest baby in her family.
"No need, sister, Xiaotao can walk!" The little girl was very stubborn.
"You are too young and your legs are too short to walk fast! By the time you get there, your second uncle and the others should be back!" Su Ying didn't say anything and carried her sister on her back to catch up with the team.
The Su family is optimistic by nature. Even if they fall into poverty, they can still find joy in adversity.
Everyone was very relaxed at the moment, forgetting the unpleasantness in the capital, releasing the unrestrained nature of youth, talking, laughing, playing and having fun.
"Aying, why are you here too?" Su Boyan turned around inadvertently and saw the elder sister carrying the younger sister.
"Let's join in the fun!" Su Ying smiled.
"Xiaotao, come here, let big brother carry you!" Su Boyan took Xiaotao.
Two or three miles away, at the foot of the mountain in the shade, there is a large area of bamboo.
"Hahaha..." The teenagers' hearty laughter spread far away.
"Flutter..." A few frightened turtledoves flew out of the bamboo forest, dropping a few feathers and dancing in the air.
"Oh! Bird! Sister, look!" Xiaotao was so happy.
Su Ying looked in the opposite direction of the startled dove and said, "Come on, big brother, let's go in and take a look."
"What are you looking at? The turtledoves have all flown away!" Su Boyan thought that his eldest sister wanted to catch the turtledoves.
"Let's go see if there are any good things!" Su Ying smiled without saying anything, and pulled her elder brother into the bamboo forest.
"Sister, what good stuff is this?" Xiaotao asked excitedly.
"We'll know in a moment!" Su Ying led the way in front, and Su Boyan followed with his little sister on his back.
Su Ying stopped when she came to a dense cluster of bamboos. There was a lot of bird droppings and bird feathers on the ground.
Looking up, I saw a bird's nest hidden among the bamboo leaves.
"Oh, sister, I saw a bird's nest!" Xiaotao said happily.
"Aying, what's so good about a bird's nest?" Su Boyan was puzzled why his elder sister was circling around the bird's nest.
"I'm trying to figure out how to get up there. There must be eggs in the bird's nest! We'll have a snack tonight!"
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