The Daily Life of Farming and Raising Children in Ancient Mountain Residences

Chapter 120: Good Furtune

As expected, the Wang family treated their grain as their own. The day before the new year, the daughter-in-law calculated that Wang Chunniang’s wife should have returned, but Mrs. Lu tied her up, gagged her, and hid her in the west wing where the grain was stored, covered by bags of grain, with Tie Zhu and Shuanzhu watching over her.

Wang Chunniang’s wife knew that if she didn’t cooperate, she wouldn’t be included in the escape, possibly endangering her children. Hearing her mother-in-law and sister-in-law outside, she didn’t make a sound, letting them dismiss the visitors.

On New Year’s Eve of the eleventh year of Jianye, a major event occurred. In Jixian County, two counties away, a wealthy family living outside the county was slaughtered overnight, and their money and grain were stolen by refugees.

On the second day of the new year, news reached Qiyang County. The townspeople kept their doors tightly closed, and the streets were nearly empty, with only a few hurried passersby.

In Qiyang County, the survival of some prominent households, especially those living outside the county, was at stake. They finally put aside their own concerns and, disregarding the fact that the county office hadn’t officially opened yet, gathered to discuss the resettlement of the refugees outside the city.

Each household made sacrifices, and perhaps the county magistrate offered some incentives. Early on the morning of the third day of the first lunar month, notices were posted outside the city gates stating that any man willing to settle and cultivate land in Qiyang County would receive one dan of grain, while unmarried men would receive half a dan.

One dan of grain per person!

For these refugees, this meant they could stretch their food supply by mixing it with wild vegetables and seeds, enough to survive for over a year!

The refugees outside the city were ecstatic, eagerly asking how much land they would receive and where they would be settled.

The county magistrate wasn’t foolish; he knew that these hundreds of refugees needed to be dispersed for resettlement. Thus, they were allocated to different areas, with two families even being assigned to Shili Village. Sang Luo was relieved they weren’t placed near her home, as any suspicious activity behind her could easily be noticed.

While the refugees were scattered, the tension among the county residents increased. Anyone heading to other counties was inevitably stopped and questioned about various news. The news that returned each day only made people more uneasy.

The Dongfu Restaurant was the largest restaurant in the county and served as a gathering place for news in Qiyang County. Those who frequented the Restaurant had broader connections than most.

There were reports of uprisings in Henan Province, rebellions in Shannan Province, sieges in Chenzhou, and rebel soldiers entering the city. Certain aristocratic families were massacred, while some wealthy families were slaughtered.

Once the refugees turned against the army, it seemed they targeted these aristocratic families, wishing to drink their blood and eat their flesh. Or perhaps the main reason was that these families possessed the most money and grain.

Thus, the news heard at the Dongfu Restaurant consistently reported that in any province or county where rebel soldiers entered, the first to suffer were the wealthy families within the province or county. Unless they were extremely powerful, they fared worse than ordinary citizens.

Among the reports of annihilated families were some with strengths comparable to the Wang family.

Day after day, Shopkeeper Xu listened with growing anxiety. Despite arranging an escape route for his wife, children, and elderly mother, he now felt his own situation was precarious. After enduring many nightmares, he gritted his teeth and hurried back to Shezhou.

…

The pressure was felt by those who had access to information in the county. For the villagers who had recently become too afraid to venture outside, life seemed relatively calm until the first day of the second lunar month arrived.

On the first day of the second lunar month, the village tax collector Zhou Lizheng arrived as expected. The familiar sound of gongs, the familiar notices.

Early collection of taxes again! In the spring of the twelfth year of Jianye, taxes for the autumn of the thirteenth year were being collected. This time it was Zhou Lizheng, who finally looked somewhat human, no longer carefree and indifferent. He seemed burdened by the notices.

Most of the villagers collapsed upon hearing Zhou Lizheng’s words, sitting on the ground and crying out, “This is unbearable! They’re making it impossible for us to live!”

It was like slicing meat with a blunt knife, one cut after another. Just when you thought you had endured one, another cut came.

Two households of refugees who had just settled in Shili Village were dumbfounded. The grain they had just received wasn’t even enough to pay the taxes.

Shili Village was in chaos. Villagers cursed the government officials. Zhou Lizheng, no longer as imposing as before, urged everyone to calm down and then unfolded another notice.

“There’s still a way out! Listen to me, you don’t necessarily have to pay these taxes and provide labor!”

Upon hearing this, the villagers finally quieted down, staring at Zhou Lizheng.

Zhou Lizheng’s throat was dry, and he swallowed hard before saying, “The Emperor is going on a personal expedition to avenge past humiliations and needs to recruit soldiers from across the country.”

Someone threw a clump of dirt at Zhou Lizheng!

“What kind of solution is this? Are you asking us to go and die?”

The anger of the crowd surged, and Zhou Lizheng covered his face with his hand. He dared not ask who threw it and hurriedly said, “Those who enlist in the army or dare to take the lead in battle will be exempt from this year’s taxes and corvee!”

Some hesitated, while others continued to throw clumps of dirt at Zhou Lizheng. He shielded his face and, leaving behind the notice with the assembly date on the third day of the second lunar month and the grain delivery date on the tenth, hastily left the village.

As the villagers dispersed on the open space, someone rushed into the village, wailing, “Sister, Chunhua, Sister! Dad’s leg is broken! His leg is broken!”

Chunhua was a woman from a neighboring village who had married into Shili Village. Originally, she and her mother-in-law were sitting on the ground crying. When they saw her sister rushing into the village crying, they asked what was wrong. When they heard the last sentence, they were stunned.

The girl named Chunhua collapsed in tears. “He did it himself, Dad cut it himself… Hurry, hurry back and see.”

She was crying so hard she could hardly speak.

Since the two villages were close, Chunhua pulled up Chunhua and prepared to leave. Zhou Lizheng thought of something and stopped them. “Child, explain clearly. How did he cut his own leg?”

Chunhua was also anxious to find out and urged her sister to speak quickly.

Chunhua sobbed, “He said that after cutting off his leg, he wouldn’t have to pay taxes or serve anymore. I think my eldest brother also wants to do it himself.”

Zhou Lizheng suddenly felt short of breath.

Some people also realized, “Yes, this isn’t crippling; it’s a blessing!”

“A blessing indeed, a blessing indeed.”

As someone spoke, laughter erupted. Sang Luo looked back and saw Zhou Laizi, a tall and burly man, with tears on his face. He cried and laughed, mumbling “a blessing indeed” to himself. Sang Luo’s heart sank for a moment.

Zhou Laizi went back, taking his eldest and second sons and sickly wife with him.

The founding emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty, Emperor Renming, was renowned for his establishment of a series of policies beneficial to the country and the people when he ascended the throne. Among them was a policy exempting the disabled from paying taxes and serving in labor. Therefore, sometimes disabled people would proudly talk about their disabilities to others, referring to them as “blessed hands and feet.”

Sang Luo had a bad feeling and, without reservation, pulled Shen Lie’s sleeve. “Let’s follow and see. I have a feeling Uncle Zhou is contemplating self-harm.”

Cutting one’s own limbs alive, whether from blood loss or infection, could be fatal.

Shen Lie also realized this and, with Sang Luo, hurried to Zhou Laizi’s house.

…

When they returned to the semi-mountain courtyard, several families who had stayed behind had gathered together. Lu Erlang and Lu Sanlang had been hiding in the backyard of Shen’s house in recent days.

“What do we do now?”

Paying taxes was impossible. Not to mention that they didn’t have any grain to pay with, even if they did, it wouldn’t be possible. Given the current grain prices and situation, handing over grain would be akin to giving away their lives.

They had been preparing to leave, but when the time actually came, everyone couldn’t help but feel uncertain about the future.

Shen Lie said, “The second batch of grain for the Dashan should have been transported already. Let’s not delay any further. Keep a low profile and start packing up tonight. We’ll leave before dawn.”

Indeed, if they didn’t leave now, would they wait for the soldiers to come and arrest them in a few days?

The Lu family’s grain had been moved to the first grain storage point half a month ago. They couldn’t go to the second storage point. After coming back several times to help each family transport useful items that were hard to come by in the mountains to the first storage point, they had no further responsibilities.

Except for Lu Erlang and Lu Sanlang, who had returned to Shen Lie’s backyard to protect the villagers staying behind, the rest of the Lu family who had gone to deliver the grain were now guarding the grain with Shi Da at the first storage point.

Now they had to protect everyone as they left. The ones with real combat power were actually Shen Lie and Lu Erlang, plus Lu Sanlang. The women and teenage boys had been practicing for these days and wouldn’t slow them down in critical moments, so leaving in the middle of the night was feasible.

Everyone more or less knew what to do; it was just a matter of Shen Lie’s leadership. After he made his decision, everyone nodded and soon dispersed.

The Lu brothers went back to the backyard to make bamboo arrows. Shen Lie and Sang Luo, along with Shen An and Shen Ning, the two youngest, bolted the courtyard gate from the inside and began packing their belongings.

The Lu family had already taken away everything they could carry, so what needed to be packed now were just everyday items. The most valuable items left were probably some remaining grain, needlework fabric, bedding, and some oil, salt, vinegar, and rice pots left in the kitchen, as well as a few wooden barrels.

It was now a test of packing skills, with each of the four assigned specific tasks. Shen Lie and Sang Luo each carried loads, while Shen An and Shen Ning carried baskets on their backs. They had to leave behind some things that they couldn’t take with them, but it wasn’t too bad.

“Sister-in-law, what about the chickens, ducks, and geese we raised?”

The big goose was good at guarding the house, and the chickens were laying eggs. They hadn’t been willing to kill any for the New Year. Now that they had to flee in a hurry, Shen Ning couldn’t help but feel sorry for the few chickens and ducks she had raised herself.

Sang Luo had already asked about the situation in the canyon. At this point, she could only shake her head and say, “We’ll have to kill the geese and roosters. They make too much noise. We’re trying to avoid trouble. Although it’s unlikely that anyone will go into such a deep place, it’s better to be safe. We can keep the hens and ducks. They can lay eggs.”

The mountains surrounding the canyons were very high, and the terrain was vast. As long as there wasn’t too much noise like a rooster crowing or a goose honking, keeping only hens and ducks wouldn’t attract attention, even if they were standing on top of a mountain.

Shen Ning understood and, upon hearing Sister-in-law’s words, also realized that the three geese and the rooster couldn’t be saved. She wiped her eyes and went to fetch water.

Sang Luo didn’t make things difficult for her. After killing four chickens and geese, which was inconvenient outside the courtyard, she and Shen Lie moved to the backyard to finish the task.

Shen Lie, while working, seemed to be lost in thought. Sang Luo lowered her eyes slightly, knowing that he was probably thinking about Shen Jin and his brothers. She sighed, “If there’s anything to explain, go out and say a few words. Just be careful not to let anything slip, and don’t let your third uncle and aunt ruin things for us at the last moment.”

Shen Lie felt a bit awkward and nodded, “I’ll go out for a bit.”

He called Shen An to go with him.

…

When Shen Jin heard three cries of the cuckoo outside and found an opportunity to sneak out of the courtyard into the mountains, he not only saw Shen An but also his eldest cousin.

“Big brother!”

He now admired his eldest cousin very much and wanted to follow him around like a little tail every day.

Shen Lie’s expression became somewhat complicated. “Xiao An said there’s another quarrel at your house. What’s this one about?”

He actually had some guesses. They were going to be conscripted again, but this time, he wouldn’t be the one cheaply used as a substitute. He wondered what tricks his third uncle had up his sleeve.

Shen Jin’s expression stiffened, and then he hesitated, not knowing what to say.

After being brought up by Shen Lie for so long, he had learned enough to be honest. After a moment of silence, he said, “It’s said that we’re going to be conscripted, and my father seems to want to use a pair of gold bracelets as payment for service. But my mother disagrees. She says if something happens at home or if we run out of grain, we can exchange the bracelets for grain.”

Gold bracelets? A hint of ridicule appeared on Shen Lie’s face.

Shen San couldn’t earn any gold bracelets. What Shen Lie knew was that his grandmother had a pair of very heavy gold bracelets. It was said to be part of her dowry, but after settling here, according to his good third uncle, they were lost on the road.

In fact, they were hidden in the private room of the couple.

Back then, with a cheap nephew like him who had no value, those gold bracelets were worth much more than his worthless life, so he was pushed out.

Now it was Shen San’s turn, and his life was worth something, so the gold bracelets were finally worth bringing out.

Seeing the coldness and ridicule on Shen Lie’s face, Shen Jin gradually lowered his head. He was nine years old and not ignorant of everything. He knew that if he said this, his big brother would definitely dislike their family even more.

Shen Lie didn’t feel any more disgusted. In his opinion, his disgust towards the Third House had already reached its peak. He just tried to be more rational and not vent his anger on his younger cousins. He let out a long breath, patted Shen Jin, and asked, “You know there are refugees everywhere now, right?”

Shen Jin nodded: “I know.”

A large number of people were resettled, and then some more came and were resettled, but it was still not very peaceful.

Shen Lie said, “Do you remember all the methods I taught you to deal with refugees attacking the village?”

Shen Jin didn’t quite understand why his eldest cousin was asking this way but still nodded, “I remember.”

“Good, come with me up the mountain.”

Shen Jin didn’t ask why they were going up the mountain. Over the past month, his eldest cousin had often taken him and Shen An up the mountain, so he just followed along.

Shen Lie led the two younger ones up the mountain for quite a while, taking several twists and turns until they reached a place where few people ventured. Opening a clump of withered bushes, beneath the bushes was mountain soil, with a large rock embedded in it.

Then Shen Jin watched as his eldest cousin embraced the rock, shifting it slightly with a few movements until it loosened and he was able to lift it out.

After the rock was removed, there was a black hole inside, about the size of a pot mouth.

“Big brother, what’s this? A rabbit hole? Why is it blocked with a stone?”

Shen Lie forced a smile and said, “Go in and take a look.”

Shen Jin looked confused, but he complied. He bent down, ready to stick his head in first, but Shen Lie grabbed him, “Support the opening with both hands and enter feet first.”

Shen Lie also complied, switching positions. Shen Jin followed his instructions and tried to enter the hole. Since it was his big brother asking him to go in, there wouldn’t be anything scary inside.

He tentatively descended into the darkness. At first, he thought it wasn’t very deep, but after a while, his feet touched the ground. Shen Lie reminded him a few times, and Shen Jin descended further. As he got used to the darkness, he realized it wasn’t a rabbit hole at all. It was deeper than a rabbit hole. It was particularly narrow at first, and he had to carefully slide down, but it widened at the bottom, enough to hide several people.

He turned around inside and found a covered jar tucked into the corner. Obviously, it was for human use. As he felt around, he found something else. Upon closer inspection, it was a slingshot!

Shen Jin was almost jumping with excitement. He crawled out of the hole through the small steps left inside and peeked his head out of the hole, his eyes shining brightly as he looked at Shen Lie, “Big brother, it’s so spacious inside. There’s even a little jar and a slingshot!”

Excited yet suppressing his voice.

“Alright, come out.”

Without lending a hand, Shen Lie confirmed that Shen Jin could climb out by himself. Then he used a stone to seal the hole back as it was and covered the bush.

“This isn’t a rabbit hole. Shen An and I dug it. If there are refugees entering the village, this place can hide people. The three of you siblings can fit inside.”

Shen Jin: ???

At first, he was a bit bewildered, then he was delighted. “Is this the place where Big Brother and Shen An planned for me, Shen Yin, and Shen Tie, and Tian Ya to hide? Is the slingshot for me too?”

Shen Lie nodded, “Yes, so this place shouldn’t be known to anyone else. Whenever you have the chance, stash some food and water inside. Make sure to change it regularly.”

Shen Jin was curious, “Does Big Brother have a place like this too?”

Shen Lie looked at him, fell silent for a moment, and said, “There will be.”

Shen Jin understood that it hadn’t been dug yet and was deeply moved. He asked again, “Big Brother, do you want me to help? I’m small, so it’s convenient for me to crawl in and dig. And why didn’t you and Shen An call me when you were digging this hole? With one more person, it would’ve been quicker.”

Shen An: …

He knew they were about to leave soon, and seeing Shen Jin now, he felt a bit reluctant, his eyes becoming a little teary. He had been avoiding eye contact with Shen Jin before, but now it was better. He took the opportunity to interrupt his elder brother and said, “We dug it ourselves. It’s not good if you know about it. Otherwise, won’t it be wasted if your parents find out?”

Shen Jin also knew his own parents weren’t very good. He felt a bit awkward and said, “I won’t tell. It’s been so long, what haven’t I told my family? Can’t you trust me yet?”

Feeling a bit wronged.

Shen An hmphed, “It’s best if you don’t say anything. We dug this hole ourselves, and it’s not for your parents. If you want to protect your parents, find another place to dig a bigger hole quietly.”

Shen An’s voice lowered, his eyes becoming even more teary. He almost shed tears, so he quickly lowered his head to arrange the bushes, not letting Shen Jin see. While doing so, he said, “Find several other places to dig holes, stash more food and water. In case refugees rush into the village, you might not have the chance to come here. My brother taught us this. It lasts a long time and can be eaten directly with water without needing a fire.”

Shen Jin had been cooking for himself for a month or two and had learned it from Shen Lie. He thought it was like a class and had been quite serious about it. He even asked about the best places to dig a hole and whether the hole would collapse.

Shen Lie explained them all.

By the end, his throat felt choked up, and they had reached the fork in the mountain path where their two families’ paths diverged.

Shen Lie squatted down, rubbed Shen Jin’s head, and looked at this little cousin he had carried and held since he was a boy, “Your parents and I, it’s like this. There are some things you can’t let you know. I hope you don’t blame your big brother. Practice the skills I taught you well. You can hunt and survive in the mountains. As long as there isn’t a major drought or plague, with these mountains, you can probably get through it. Do you understand?”

“Yes!” Shen Jin nodded vigorously, “Big brother, was the slingshot really given to me? Do I have a slingshot like Shen An’s now?”

Shen Lie nodded, “It’s for you. Practice with it quietly in the mountains. Don’t bring it home.”

“Thank you, big brother. Thank you, Shen An.” Shen Jin smiled, his eyes curving. The Shen family was actually quite nice, and Shen Jin was no exception. He smiled sweetly.

Shen Lie felt uncomfortable in his heart and forced a smile, patting Shen Jin, “Go back, or your parents will come looking for you.”

Shen Jin pouted, “They’re too busy to look for me. Who knows when they’ll finish arguing.”

But he still waved to Shen Lie and then said to Shen An, “Remember to bring me along tomorrow to practice slingshot in the mountains. I have a slingshot now too.”

Shen An could hardly look at him, just nodded vaguely with his head down.

As soon as Shen Jin turned around, tears streamed down Shen An’s face in clusters. He kept wiping his tears, crying silently.

When Shen Jin walked far away, Shen An finally looked up and asked Shen Lie softly, “Big brother, are we really just going to abandon Xiao Jin like this?”

Shen Lie also felt uncomfortable, but he just patted his brother’s head, “If your paternal grandparents say that your eldest sister-in-law and I are unreliable and want to secretly take you and An Ning away, will you follow them?”

Shen An didn’t even need to think, he shook his head, “We’ll follow you and eldest sister-in-law.”

As Shen An said this, he also understood. He wiped his tears and said, “Big brother, I understand now.”

No matter how bad Uncle San and Aunt San were, they were still Xiao Jin’s parents. They were still affectionate towards him and An Ning, especially Aunt San.

Just like how he wouldn’t need to think twice about choosing his eldest brother and sister-in-law, Xiao Jin would also choose his own parents.

Seeing that Shen An had figured it out, Shen Lie pulled him back while walking, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ve taught them so much. As long as it’s not a rebel military bandit’s hideout directly entrenched in the village, as long as their luck isn’t too bad, they should be able to survive that moment, and there shouldn’t be any trouble afterward.”

However, life would be much harder. It was probably similar to the time when Shen An and An Ning were hiding in the mountains. If their food was robbed, they could only fill their stomachs with wild vegetables and grass roots. Perhaps it would be even worse. At least during Shen An and An Ning’s time, the world was relatively peaceful, and they didn’t have to worry too much, hiding in their cave.

But this was no longer within the scope of what Shen Lie, as their cousin, should interfere with or be concerned about. If Uncle San and Aunt San couldn’t even manage to feed their own children with the resources available in these mountains, then they would have failed as parents.