1767, the sky is not as big as the earth, two families are not as big as one family
This time, the fun was a little bigger.
Apparently, the gunpowder frightened the gazelles a little too much. Half of the smaller gazelles fell into the snow nest, and the rest were experienced old sheep and ran away from both sides of the ridge line.
Mo Zui looked at the dense holes and felt that at least one or two thousand animals had fallen in.
In fact, there is no need to have so many sheep. If you can't eat them all, isn't it a waste? Kill less and more sheep will be bred next year.
He and the old man used horse poles and ropes to tie the sheep's horns, and dragged out more than a dozen sheep. They slaughtered them on the spot, stripped them and washed them. If there was no water this season, they rubbed them with snow.
I tied up two hundred kilograms of mutton and a dozen sheepskins, put them on the camel's carrier, and returned to the camp excitedly.
If we were transporting sheep and couldn't pull many, we would simply kill them all and take the meat back directly. All the limbs, heads and internal organs of the sheep would be thrown away. Anyway, there were prairie wolves here, so they were cleaned up in one night.
It was already evening when we returned to the camp by the lake.
I broke open the ice to get some water, and started to stew the mutton in the big pot. I threw in the wild onions, wild acid, and the salt and spices brought from the grinding table. The aroma suddenly spread.
The girl brought the leek flower sauce made from the wild leeks she picked. She put some in the bottom of each bowl for Dad and Brother Zhang, and sliced the cooked mutton, which was very delicious when dipped.
The three of them sat around the campfire, eating mutton and drinking wine. The old man sat in the middle, and the girl sat on one side of the table. The girl's face was glowing red under the light of the fire.
"Young man, where do you live from? I've known you for so long, and you always look worried, so I don't have a hard time asking." The old man asked after getting drunk.
"No one in my family was dead. Later, I wandered to Ji Town and became a domestic slave of Dingyuan Marquis Mansion. Later, I got into trouble and was torn away by the Marquis Mansion and kicked out. I am now
He is a lonely person who doesn't care about anything."
The old man was surprised. He came from the Marquis's Mansion. He had experienced being around big shots. No wonder this young man didn't look like the children of ordinary people.
In this era, being a domestic slave in the mansion of a big shot is the envy of the common people, not the object of contempt.
A seventh-rank official in front of the prime minister, despite his status as a slave, not only does he not have to pay taxes, but he does not have to perform corvee service. He will not be drafted into the army, and he has good food and housing.
All year round, the common people, fathers, sons and brothers, farm, burn charcoal, and do all kinds of work. They have no leisure at the end of the year. They are often worse than the previous year. Being able to eat bran-thick vegetables for half a year is considered a good life. At least the family can maintain their livelihood.
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"Brother Zhang, we have hands and feet, and we can support ourselves by working on our own, so why should we be slaves for others? It's a good thing that you are free again." The girl blushed and persuaded softly.
The old man asked with a smile: "What are your plans in the future?"
"I have settled here and will not go anywhere. I have a small cabin next to the road and railway. I am responsible for maintaining the road and planting trees. Next year, the land will be transformed into sand and some crops will be planted and raised.
Poultry, pigs, dogs, etc. The Highway Management Office gives me a salary of twelve taels a year, which is enough to live on."
I heard that Mo Zui was not planning to leave and would live here for a long time. The girl immediately became happy.
She is eighteen years old this year, which is an old girl in this era. In this era, girls usually get married when they are thirteen or fourteen or fifteen years old. However, the population here is sparsely populated, so where can we find suitable young people?
Although Brother Zhang is seven or eight years older than him, he is energetic, has a good temperament, and is very strong. He is a good choice for living.
The people of the lower class are very realistic. A strong man is the main labor force of the family. He is stronger than anything else.
The old man looked at the girl's expression and put his arm around Mo Zuo's shoulders. He laughed loudly and said, "Fengxian, do you care about my girl?"
The girl immediately covered her face in shame and ran away.
Mo Zui didn't expect the old man to be so straightforward and asked him directly. Mo Zui was stunned for a while.
He has been single all his life, has never experienced love, and doesn't know how to deal with it. All these years, all he has been thinking about is revenge, and he has never thought about starting a family.
However, this girl struck a chord with him the first time he met her.
"Da Da, this, I,..."
Seeing Mo Zui's nervous and incoherent expression, his face flushed and unable to even utter a complete sentence, he understood everything.
"Hahaha, young people, it's time for men to get married and women to get married. How about you marry my daughter." The old man said with a hearty smile.
"This won't work, it won't work..." Mo Zui quickly declined.
"What! You look down on my daughter," the old man said with a glare.
"No, I don't like her..."
"Then why don't you agree? I don't want your bride price, and there is no one in your family anymore. Don't worry about your elders disapproving."
Mo Zui lowered his head and muttered: "But I have a problem, I can't get married yet."
The old man's eyes suddenly widened and he said loudly: "What's your problem? Can it be cured? Can you hug my daughter to the kang?"
Seeing that the old man had misunderstood, Mo Desi's face turned red and he quickly said: "Dad, I'm not sick, I'm normal. I'm here to take care of things. I'm assigned here. I can't leave for ten years.
Trees are planted here and roads are maintained. I’m still wearing a hat and I’m being punished here.”
Only then did the old man realize that this was the reason.
He smiled and said: "I see you are alone, with a bare head, and you would be warmer if you wore a hat."
Unexpectedly, people didn't mind him being a criminal at all.
In fact, Mo Zui felt quite inferior at this time. He still had ten years left in his sentence. Although no one was watching over him here, he could move around freely. But after all, such a big matter could not be hidden from others.
How could he, a thief serving in the army, dare to take advantage of someone else's daughter?
The old man said sternly: "I see, you have a good life, and you will be good in the future. When I get old, I can't take care of my daughter for the rest of my life. The sky is not as big as the earth, and two families are not as big as one family. I entrust you to be the master.
You two will get married in the pasture, and from now on you will have children, herd sheep and farm, and you will not seek to be rich and powerful, as long as you live a peaceful life."
Mo Zui was so moved that he cried. Looking at the old father-in-law, he choked and said, "It all depends on Da Da."
The old man went out the next day, and three days later, the camp became lively.
Mo Zuo was surprised to find that there were so many people in this wilderness despite being inaccessible. They were all herdsmen in this wasteland. There were Han Chinese who came to avoid the harsh government, Alxa Mongols, and Uighurs...
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They usually graze in various places with water sources, one by one, but if any family has a happy event, according to the rules on the grassland, they will all come to congratulate them.
Mr. Han is an old man here and has many friends. Hundreds of people came to cheer and cheer, including men, women, old and young.
These neighbors cobbled together a new yurt for the couple. They also brought kumiss and beef jerky. Mozhi used camels to transport white wine, canned sea fish, and canned braised pork.
The herdsmen were very happy. Baijiu is a rare thing. There is also pork that is only available to Han people. They have never eaten sea fish in their lives. They are even more surprised. This fried small yellow croaker is so delicious and fragrant. It almost tastes bad.
Didn't swallow the tongue.
Weddings on the grassland are also very simple. Some women gather around the dressed-up bride. The men sing and dance around the bonfire. When everyone has enjoyed themselves and the bonfire is extinguished, the newlyweds are sent into the yurt.
Tonight is a full moon night, and the bright moonlight shines into the yurt through the window screen.
I couldn't fall asleep after grinding the table for a long time. I looked at my newlywed wife who was sleeping soundly in my arms, with tears in my eyes but a smile on my lips.
