The villagers in Guojiacun looked at the vehicles and Liu Jin and others with curiosity. They could see that Liu Jin and others were not simple people.
Take a closer look at Liu Jin, the leader. This Liu Jin has an extraordinary bearing. He looks like a big shot at first glance. If you think about it carefully, there should be no such figure in his own Guojia Village or even in the surrounding towns.
Liu Jin walked towards the villagers, while Uncle Guo, Uncle Wang, Uncle Li and others took the initiative to move forward and said with a smile: "I don't know if the noble person is coming, but I am not welcome from afar!"
For older people like them, they are particularly cautious in this regard, because in the past, not to mention the big shots outside, even the village chief inside the village could do anything to the villagers like them.
.
So when they see someone who is an official or a noble person, they will be cautious.
"Brothers, I was just passing by here and asked for a glass of water."
Liu Jin returned the greeting with a smile.
"Brother?"
When Mr. Guo and others heard this, they were stunned for a moment, then looked at Liu Jin carefully and said, "I wonder how old you are, noble sir?"
"You seem to be in your thirties or forties."
"Haha, I am already over 50 years old this year."
Liu Jin said with a smile.
"More than fifty years old?"
When Uncle Guo, Uncle Wang, Uncle Li and others heard this, they all couldn't help but slightly widen their eyes, looking a little unbelievable.
Because the Liu Jin in front of him looked too young. He was in his thirties, younger than their sons. Who knew he was also in his fifties, which was a little younger than them.
"It's just that I don't get much sun exposure, so I look younger."
Liu Jin said with a smile, and a servant had already brought out a chair so that Liu Jin could sit down and chat with the villagers.
Some villagers here also went to boil water at home.
"As I've been walking along, it seems that our village is the only one with people within a radius of more than ten miles."
Liu Jin chatted with everyone in a very easy-going manner.
"Isn't that right? There are basically no people around us now. Everyone has left, especially the young people. They have basically moved outside the customs. That is to say, we old guys are left and are reluctant to leave here, so
Didn’t leave.”
Uncle Guo nodded and said.
"Have they all moved outside the customs with the imperial immigrants?"
Liu Jin thought for a while and continued to ask.
"Yep!"
"Ever since Hongzhi was more than ten years old, the imperial court began to encourage everyone to move out. In the beginning, no one was willing to leave the three places of Liaodong, Western Regions, and Hezhong."
"At that time, it was a strict order from the court. We all drew lots, and whoever was drawn would move out. Those who were drawn were as if they were going to see the King of Hell. They were crying and crying, and no one was willing to leave."
Everyone felt relieved when they saw that Liu Jin was very easy-going, had no airs, and was willing to sit together and chat with everyone, and they slowly started chatting.
"Well, as far as I know, the immigration policy provided by the court at that time was still very good. Food and accommodation were provided on the way, and houses and food were provided when we arrived."
Liu Jin thought for a while and said.
"No, the policy is very good."
"At that time, everyone was mainly afraid that those officials' words would not count. They were afraid that after they left, they would have nothing and everything would have to start from scratch. If they stayed in their hometown, there would at least be a mess."
"Yes, everyone was scared and anxious at that time. My eldest son was the one who won the lottery. At that time, he was unwilling to go. Later, there was really no other way, so he went with the intention of dying."
Uncle Wang also added.
"There were still many people running away at that time. They would rather flee into the mountains than move to Liaodong. At that time, people said that Liaodong was the place where criminals were exiled. It was said that it was so cold that their noses and ears would be affected.
It will freeze, so it scares many people to death and they are unwilling to go."
Uncle Li also said with a smile.
When talking about the initial immigration, everyone got excited, because they were actually young at that time and could have immigrated.
"Well, it seems that people were really unwilling to immigrate back then. What happened next?"
When Liu Jin heard this, he immediately laughed.
To be honest, it took a lot of effort to relocate the people on the Loess Plateau. The main reason was that people were unwilling to immigrate.
No matter how good the government's words were and no matter how many promises they made, people at that time just didn't believe it and were unwilling to immigrate out, fearing that the government's words would not count. Moreover, Liaodong was also a very remote area at that time, and it was indeed the place where prisoners were exiled before.
In this place, it is indeed much colder than here in winter.
"Later, the first people to immigrate found that it was not that bad outside."
"The people who immigrated to Liaodong not only have a brand-new house to live in, but also have food distributed by the government. The land there is very fertile, and the fields are thousands of miles away. They can cultivate it at will, and the land they cultivate becomes their own land. The court also exempts them from paying taxes.
Land taxes in the first few years, subsidies for buying machinery, interest-free loans, etc.”
"In the first year my eldest son immigrated, he cultivated hundreds of acres of land. By autumn, the food grown filled the whole house, and we couldn't finish it all."
"When he asked someone to write the letter back, we didn't believe it. We thought it was all fake and a trick of the government to deceive people."
"It wasn't until the second year that my son not only wrote letters but also sent money back. The immigrants also asked people to bring letters back. Then everyone believed that the immigrants were really
I’ve lived a good life.”
"But at that time, people were still reluctant to immigrate because it was too far away and they were not sure whether they could live that kind of life."
Uncle Wang also smiled and replied.
"After a few years, more and more people immigrated, and some people came back one after another. Each of the people who came back changed drastically and became rich. They were all like landlords and rich people. Everyone is like this
Only then did I truly believe that they were living a good life outside."
"Slowly, more and more people immigrated, and many of them even immigrated with their relatives and friends."
Uncle Li also continued.
"Isn't that right? At that time, there were more than a dozen young people in our village discussing emigrating together."
Uncle Guo also followed suit.
"As more and more people immigrated, there were fewer and fewer people here. Later, most of the young people immigrated."
"Life outside can be much simpler and more relaxed. If nothing else, at least you don't have to worry about drinking water or farming."
"Everyone's life outside is getting better and better, but those who stay here continue to be poor, and naturally they all immigrate out."
"Even some elderly people immigrated with their children."
"This is how our place gradually became deserted."
"I saw that there were no fields on the other side of the slope. In the past, everyone was scrambling to plant them. But now they are all barren and full of weeds and no one wants them."
"There is also the Chenjia Village over there. It used to be a large village with dozens of households. Now it is completely deserted. There is no one left. The people of Chenjia Village, in the 31st year of Hongzhi,
At that time, the whole village moved to the river."
The old people told Liu Jin the great changes that had taken place here.
"Why didn't you immigrate out then?"
"If you count the time, you were all still young at that time."
Liu Jin nodded while listening. This was consistent with the policy he had formulated at the time, and the immigration situation at that time was also consistent.
"I originally thought about emigrating, but my parents are still alive at home. As the eldest son, I stayed here to provide for them until the end of their lives."
"I thought the journey was far away and I didn't dare to go, so I didn't go."
"I originally wanted to go, but then I thought about it and decided not to go. If you are poor, just be poorer and live your whole life here in my hometown. However, my sons have immigrated and now I don’t even have anyone to provide for them in old age. I have enough money.
They are sent here every year.”
Everyone answered with a smile.
"Do you regret not emigrating?"
After Liu Jin heard this, he smiled and said.
"It would be a lie to say I don't regret it."
"The people in my village who are about the same age as me have become great after they immigrated. Every household owns tens of thousands of acres of land, breeding farms, etc. Many of them even took in concubines and gave birth to many children.
"
Uncle Guo smiled and said: "In comparison, if I stay here, it will be far behind."
"Yes, it is indeed far different. Not only that, we have very little contact with the outside world here, so we know much less."
"Those who immigrated are different. They know a lot and have a wide range of experiences."
"This year, our village's Wang Er Mazi, who is the same age as me, came back. When we stood together, the gap was too big. This Wang Er Mazi has now become a spirit and started doing business. What's the matter with his clothes?"
They are completely different from us."
Uncle Wang also followed suit.
"So, most of the people here have emigrated, and we are the only ones left."
Uncle Li also nodded solemnly and said: "The times are changing too fast. Even those of us who are eliminated by the times have not kept up with the development of the times."
Liu Jin listened to their words carefully and nodded while listening.
Thinking about future generations, it is similar. The gap between those who have gone out to work for decades and those who have stayed at home and farmed for decades is still not small. Whether it is knowledge or other aspects, the gap is quite big.
