In a daze, Shen Chen seemed to hear someone calling him.
He raised his head and saw his father, Shen Zhen.
"Father."
Shen Chen responded.
Shen Zhen said softly: "The elder is calling you."
Shen Chen looked over and saw Deng Hong waving to him.
"Achen, what do you think about the clan discussion?"
When he arrived at the hall and bowed to the clan elders, Deng Hong asked him.
Shen Chen shook his head and said, "I was thinking about what happened yesterday, and I was a little lost in thought. I didn't hear my uncles' discussion."
"Well"
Deng Hong looked around and saw that Deng Mao, Deng Zhao and several elders of the Shen clan also had unhappy expressions on their faces.
It was very impolite at that time for the elders to speak to the younger ones but ignore them.
However, Shen Chen had made great contributions to the clan, so no one could say anything.
Deng Zhao then said: "Just now we were discussing the route to the south, planning to go down Pi Jingpei State to Runan, and enter Nanyang from Runan."
Shen Chen thought: "No, Xiapi, Pei, Runan and other places have suffered from repeated wars over the years, especially Xiapi. Not long after Cao Cao massacred him, the plague is rampant. I am afraid that if the tribe encounters the plague on their way south, it will be a disaster for the whole family. There has to be a safe route."
"oh?"
Deng Mao asked: "Where can we be safe? There has never been a plague in Guangling, but Zuo Rong has caused trouble to the place. Two prefects have already died at his hands. We are passing by Guangling, and we are afraid of being harmed by him."
Shen Chen shook his head and said: "It's not certain yet. Let me think about it for two days. Now the clan members need to be trained and the clan property needs to be sold. There is still time."
Deng Mao said bitterly: "That Cao thief is in a hurry. Everyone just discussed that it would be best to leave before the end of this month."
"Leaving before the end of the month?"
Shen Chen was very surprised, because today is May 15th, and moving a family is not a trivial matter. Even if an ordinary farmer wants to leave his hometown and go to another place, he has to deal with all the assets, which takes at least ten and a half months.
There are more than 300 households in Huangmenting and more than 1,000 households. In addition, there is still a large amount of property and fields to deal with, and clan guards need to be trained. Two months is not enough, let alone not enough.
Deng Mao sighed and said: "The folks are also scared. Xuzhou is already a place of right and wrong. So many people died yesterday. I'm afraid if we stay here any longer."
"I see."
Shen Chen nodded silently, he was very aware of this situation. In front of the butcher's knife and the calamity of annihilation, it is understandable to want to escape as soon as possible.
"The clan's land?"
Shen Chen asked again.
"Be prepared to sell it cheaply, or just give it up."
Deng Mao replied: "People are more important than land."
Shen Chen praised: "My uncle is indeed sensible, but he can't just abandon it."
"Do you have any idea?"
"I heard that the Mi family is a very wealthy family in Xuzhou, with numerous assets. I met Master Mi at Tao Shijun's place a few days ago. Maybe I can sell the land to him. With the money and food, my family can live a happy life after going to Jingzhou."
"Really?"
Deng Mao said happily: "Then this matter and the issue of the route to move south will be left to Ah Chen."
"Chen understands that he will live up to his uncle's trust."
Shen Chen agreed.
Strictly speaking, he was not familiar with Mi Zhu, but this was business, and a businessman had no reason to refuse.
In the next few days, both the Deng and Shen clans in Huangmenting were busy with moving.
Soon, on May 21st, Shen Chen went to the residence of Biejia in Shan County and asked to meet Mi Zhu.
At this time, Mi Zhu was hosting a banquet for Liu Bei and Kong Rong in his mansion.
Because Kong Rong was about to leave for Beihai tomorrow, and Tao Qian was seriously ill recently and could not see him off, so he ordered Mi Zhu to do it for him.
Since it was Mi Zhu who went to Beihai to ask Kong Rong for help, the three of them were very familiar with each other. As they were changing cups and cups, they heard that Shen Chen was visiting and invited him in quickly.
"Zi Zhong Gong, Wen Ju Gong, Xuande Gong!"
After entering the door, he saw Liu Bei and Kong Rong also there, Shen Chen bowed one by one in order.
Mi Zhu was the master and had to be the first to receive the ceremony. Kong Rong was the oldest and the most virtuous, so he was the second. Liu Bei could only be the third. Han Dynasty etiquette had very standard procedures. If it was wrong, it would make people feel rude.
The three of them nodded in response, and Mi Zhu said, "Child, please sit down."
Shen Chen sat down.
Liu Bei said with a smile: "Young gentleman came at the right time. Tomorrow Wen Jugong will return to Beihai. We are preparing to see him off."
Shen Chen raised his hands and said, "What a coincidence. I wish Wen Jugong all the best."
Kong Rong sighed: "You are so smart and smart, and you have the same demeanor as I did when I was a child, which is very lovable. It's a pity that I didn't bring any books with me this time, otherwise I would give you some, which would also benefit people's wisdom."
"I understand Mr. Wen Ju's good intentions, but this time the family is moving to Jingzhou. If he still has a chance to see him in the future, he will have a long talk with him."
Shen Chen politely responded that in the late Han Dynasty, when books and materials were as precious as gold, if someone wanted to donate a book, that would be a great kindness.
Although it was only Kong Rong's words, Kong Rong was not a person who spoke freely, which shows that he did have this idea, so he must also thank him. This is called etiquette.
This was what Kong Rong admired most about him. At the age of eight, his behavior was no different from that of an adult. He even paid more attention to details and etiquette than ordinary nobles. When you get along with such a person, you will feel comfortable and feel like a spring breeze.
Mi Zhu asked: "Are you still going to leave Xuzhou? Is it because you are worried about Cao Cao's return? You can rest assured about this. I have learned that Cao Cao was attacked by Lu Bu, and now I am afraid that he will not be able to protect himself."
Shen Chen nodded and said: "Cao Cao is indeed unable to protect himself, but his clan members were attacked and suffered many casualties. He has been frightened for the past few days, so he plans to return to his ancestral home in Nanyang to rest."
"Does Mr. Xiao want to leave? It's a pity that Mr. Tao is seriously ill now, and Xuzhou City is in trouble due to internal and external troubles. Talents like Mr. Xiao are needed to help."
Liu Bei sighed. He felt that Shen Chen was a very smart man. The situation in Xuzhou was very bad now. Shen Chen could analyze the situation in an orderly manner and needed his help.
However, Shen Chen had his own considerations and said with a smile: "Don't be anxious, Mr. Xuande. I'm still young now and I haven't figured out many things yet. When I study for a few more years and gain more years, we will be able to meet again someday." There will be a day when we meet again, and it will not be too late for me to come back and help you then."
"hope so."
Liu Bei replied noncommittally, "In such troubled times, I don't know when and what month we will see each other again."
Mi Zhu said: "I wonder what the reason for Zhizi's visit is?"
Shen Chen replied: "The clan property wants to be sold. I learned that Master Mi is a wealthy man in Xuzhou. I wonder if he is interested in the 10,000 acres of land in Huangmen Pavilion?"
"oh?"
Mi Zhu was indeed interested and asked: "How many of these fields are lower, middle and upper?"
Shen Chen said: "The lower fields are 9,326 acres, the middle fields are 6,959 acres, and the upper fields are 3,477 acres. The clans have already counted these fields, and the total is 18,000. Seven hundred and sixty-two acres.”
The field area in the Han Dynasty was actually much smaller than the area of one acre in later generations, about one-third less, and one acre was equivalent to 0.69 acres in modern times.
Moreover, the yield of millet and wheat was not high at that time. In the Henan and Hebei areas of the Yellow River Basin, summer millet and winter wheat were grown in two crops. One acre of land was planted with millet in spring and summer, and wheat in autumn and winter. The yield per acre per mature year was two to three shi. Two ripe ones are about four to six stones.
An adult consumes about two to three kilo of food per month. A family of five people, even if the minimum ration is two kilo, consumes ten kilo per month and 120 kilo per year.
So the minimum standard for food and clothing is that this family of five needs to cultivate more than 20 acres of land and harvest 120 dan of grain every year to ensure food.
But that is only the most ideal situation. Taxes, natural disasters, production cuts, wars, living expenses, oil, salt, soy, vinegar, etc. will all increase the burden on food, clothing and the economy. Therefore, in fact, a family of five has to cultivate far more land than imagined. There are more people, usually each person has to farm about ten acres to make a living.
Shen Chen's family is considered a rich peasant family. His parents, eldest brother, sister-in-law, and himself are just a family of five. They have more than 300 acres of farmland in their name. They are rich farmers. However, ordinary families only have about 50 or 60 acres of farmland. They encounter natural disasters and man-made disasters. , they can only sell their property and sell themselves into slavery.
The Huangmenting family of Deng and Shen is the leader, with a total population of more than 500 people, and there are more than 600 people with other surnames. Half of them are not farmers, but land slaves who rent the fields of the Deng and Shen family. , struggling to survive.
Therefore, according to standard calculations, Huangmenting has a population of more than 1,100, and the land should be more than 11,000 acres. However, the Deng and Shen families are annexing land, so the land has increased.
Although Shen Chen knew that annexing land was the cause of the dynasty's demise, he had no way to stop it.
His own clan is a small landlord class with vested interests. It is impossible for him to shout slogans to knock down the landlords and divide the poor farmland. In that case, he will not only have no friends, but also no family.
But generally speaking, Huangmenting's land resources tend to be benign. Only a small number of land slaves and disciples are employed, and most of them are homesteaders. The only small landowners who don't have to work in the fields are the elders of the Deng and Shen clans. , the distribution of land is fairly even.
When he heard that the land they owned was close to 20,000 acres, Mi Zhu's eyes suddenly showed a philistine light.
The reason why the landlord class is a landlord class is that they have unimaginable greed and persistence for their fields. Although the Mi family is a wealthy family in Xuzhou, who would despise their own wealth?
The most important thing is that Huangmenting is not far from Shan County, with only more than 40 miles of land. If it is captured by Mi Zhu, these lands will be within his control. As for the farming serfs, there is no need to worry. These days, there are many are displaced refugees.
It's just that Mi Zhu is a businessman, and it's his nature to buy low and sell high, so he didn't rush to express his position. Instead, he pretended to be embarrassed and said hesitantly: "This. This"
"Is the principal in trouble?"
Of course Shen Chen could see that he wanted to lower the price, but he had to admit that Mi Zhu had indeed picked a good time, so he could only hold his nose and wait for a counteroffer.
Mi Zhu said: "Now Xuzhou is in a dilapidated state and there are unowned fields everywhere. I don't need so many fields."
Shen Chen said: "Most of the unclaimed land is in Pengcheng and Xiapi after being massacred by Cao Cao. There is no such good land as Huangmenting around Yancheng. The boss still has to think about it."
"That's true."
Mi Zhu touched the beard of the goat under his chin and said: "But today I am hosting a banquet for Duke Wenju and Duke Xuande. It is not appropriate to discuss business matters. In a few days, I will go to Huangmen Pavilion in person to see the fields and discuss the matter."
"Of course."
Shen Chen nodded to express his understanding. Firstly, he really had something to do today, and secondly, when buying and selling goods, you always have to look at the goods and finally negotiate the price.
So today we are just talking about this matter. When it comes time to actually buy and sell, we will have to wait a few more days for it to be normal.