"If this Widow Xie was born in later generations and could be educated, she would be a good managerial talent."
Liu Jin nodded and thought as he watched Widow Xie get dozens of big men to line up in a few words and hand out steamed buns and soup to everyone in a very orderly manner.
"It's a pity that she was born in ancient times, in this era of three obediences and four virtues. Without her husband, she is destined to be miserable for the rest of her life, even though she is always carefree, talking and laughing to others."
But soon, Liu Jin shook his head with regret.
In ancient times, a married daughter was really a loser. Everything went to her husband's family. If she was unlucky and her husband died, it was definitely not easy to remarry. She had to go through her husband's family.
Just agree.
In order to maintain the reputation of the family, the husband's family often requires the husband to observe chastity, that is, not to remarry. In the Ming Dynasty, the government was relatively supportive of chastity, and the Chastity Arch is enough to illustrate this point.
If you don't remarry, there will often be a lot of trouble. As the saying goes, a widow has a lot of trouble at home, and that's what it means.
If you have children, and there is a boy, then congratulations, for the sake of having a boy, at least the brothers in the clan will still help you.
But if you don't give birth to a boy for your husband, your fate will be very tragic. Ordinary lower-class families will most likely become the wife of the husband's brother, because it is very difficult to marry a daughter-in-law, and there is no reason for the husband's family to leave one alone.
use.
If the family condition is not bad, life will not be easy, because there is no male son, so it is very likely that the family will be devoured by members of the husband's clan.
The so-called "eating an extinct household", if understood literally, means that a family faces no heirs, no children, and leaves some meager property. People are said to be selfish, so the property of an extinct family becomes numerous.
Villagers, relatives and friends have "made money".
They usually join forces and come to this household to forcibly take possession of property, ranging from needlework, pots and pans to real estate and fields. The whole idea is to divide up any valuable property in this family and let this family's valuable property be divided up.
Things cease to exist and are reduced to nothing.
This rhythm of punishing people and property is a bit like the scene of being divided up by the great powers in the late Qing Dynasty. It drives people to death and has no humanity at all.
Once exterminated, the fate of a widow is often death. Sometimes even the widow herself will forcibly occupy the property or simply sell it to a brothel.
At the end of the Ming Dynasty and the beginning of the Qing Dynasty, there was a talented woman named Liu Rushi. She and her husband, who was a high official, lived together lovingly and lovingly. Moreover, this woman had the heart to save the country and the people.
But unfortunately, her husband passed away. When Liu Rushi, a widow, faced fellow villagers who wanted to make a fortune, she hanged herself to protect her husband's property and belongings.
The widow Xie in front of Liu Jin was lucky because her husband left her a son and a daughter before his death, so at least she would not be deprived of her family.
"Winter melon peel, why are you kicking the steamed bun in your arms?"
Just as Liu Jin was deep in thought, Widow Xie's loud voice sounded again, and Liu Jin quickly looked over.
I saw Widow Xie holding a spoon in her hand, pointing at a short man with a dark complexion and saying sternly.
This man's name is Dong Gua, nicknamed Winter Melon Peel, which is homophonic to Dong Guapi, which means that as long as this person has any benefit, no matter how big or small, he must definitely scrape it back. At this time, the bulge in his arms is obviously hidden.
thing.
"Nothing, nothing."
"I'm not afraid that the steamed buns will get cold, so I put them in my arms."
Dong Gua was exposed by Widow Xie in front of everyone, and his face suddenly turned red. He took out the steamed bun in his arms and put it into his mouth to take a bite.
"Hmph~ Don't think I don't know what you want to do."
"Brother Jin said, these steamed buns are enough, it's up to you to eat as much as you want, but as long as I'm here, none of you can even think of taking away a single steamed bun."
"Don't think that others don't know about your little chicken intestines. Brother Jin recruits everyone to do things. He gives 40 big men a day and includes a meal. Don't be dissatisfied."
"If everyone is like you, no matter how much steamed buns you take, it won't be enough."
Widow Xie didn't show any sympathy to Dong Gua at all and said very seriously.
Many people were silent when they heard Widow Xie's words. Some people quietly took out the steamed buns in their arms.
Liu Jin actually saw someone kicking the steamed buns into his arms, but Liu Jin didn't say anything. Everyone was scared. These big white flour steamed buns can only be eaten during the Chinese New Year, and they all wanted to
Take one or two home to give your family a taste.
Now that Widow Xie was yelling like this, everyone suddenly became more honest and silently ate steamed buns and drank broth.
"This Widow Xie is not bad. I can give her more opportunities in the future."
Liu Jin looked at the scene in front of him and had a good impression of Widow Xie.
"Brother Jin, why don't you drive this winter melon peel out and try to take advantage of him?"
Next to Liu Jin, Zhao Erhu looked a little angry. For someone like Dong Gua who wanted to take advantage of Liu Jin, he wanted to go up and give him a few slaps right now.
"Forget it, it's all a trivial matter. There's no need to make a fuss about it. Everyone is pretty good. I thought building a house would be a troublesome thing. There are all kinds of things to be busy with."
"I didn't expect that with everyone's help, everything would be in order. Uncle Zhou and Uncle Li are the commander-in-chief together. Everyone worked hard and attentively. Even in this winter, everyone's hands are frozen."
"On the other hand, I have done nothing but contribute money. If it weren't for everyone, I really don't know where to start."
Liu Jin smiled and shook his head and said, these words come from the heart.
The people in the village are very simple. Although there are people like Dong Gua who want to take advantage of small things, their flaws are not concealed. They are very serious and enthusiastic in doing things for Liu Jin. Uncle Zhou is old and is worried that everyone will not be reliable in doing things, so he braves the cold.
He acted as a checkpoint for Liu Jin and acted as the commander-in-chief on the spot.
"Brother Jin, this is what we guys should do. This winter, everyone is having a hard time. If you have something to do and the wages you pay are high, this winter will be much better for everyone."
"Actually, it should be all of us thanking you."
Next to Liu Jin, Uncle Zhou didn't go over to line up. He came uninvited. He didn't want to take any advantage of Liu Jin. He brought his own dry food.
"Huzi, go get some steamed buns and a bowl of broth for Uncle Zhou."
As soon as Liu Jin saw Uncle Zhou eating his dry food, he immediately slapped his forehead fiercely and quickly ordered Zhao Erhu to get steamed buns and soup for Uncle Zhou.
"Grandpa Zhou, when you work for me, there is no point in eating your own dry food. Come on, drink the soup first to warm your body and bones."
Liu Jin helped Uncle Zhou find a stone to sit down, took the broth brought by Zhao Erhu, and served it to Uncle Zhou.
"This... I am shameless for once."
Uncle Zhou smiled and said that there were already two people in his family. The eldest son was a mason and a skilled worker, so he was naturally one of them. The second son was considered as a labor force indicator for each household.
Two people from the family come to help Liu Jin, and they can earn 90 Wen that day, plus a lunch for the two laborers. If this is reduced, the life of Uncle Zhou's family will be much easier this winter.
Uncle Zhou came over to help on his own initiative. He had no wages, and he didn't want to eat this lunch, but the big white flour buns and the meaty broth were very tempting. Now that Liu Jin was in charge again, he also
No more rejection.
"It should, it should."
"If you hadn't come to help me, Uncle Zhou, I really don't know what I would have done. I don't even know how to thank you."
Liu Jin shook his head repeatedly and expressed his gratitude very seriously.
"Well, Uncle Zhou, I don't know much about building a house. I don't know what materials are needed and where to buy them. Having an old man in this family is like having a treasure."
"Uncle Zhou, please come over and help me with the overall construction of the house. I will also calculate the wages for you, including the technical work, which is 50 yuan a day. I will also have lunch with the others."
After thinking about it, Liu Jin felt that he still needed a helper to take charge of this matter. With Uncle Zhou here, he felt relieved and could save his energy to do other things.
"This, how can this be possible? I'm old and can't do anything at all. Why don't I just come here to make a living~"
When Uncle Zhou heard this, he immediately shook his head and said.
"Okay, of course. Uncle Zhou, you are the mayor of our village. You are the most knowledgeable, and everyone respects you. If you can take care of such a big thing as building a house, I will absolutely rest assured."
Liu Jin said with a smile: "I will leave this matter of building a house to you. You can ask me directly for the amount of silver needed. It will be autumn next year. I still have to concentrate on my studies. There are many things to do to build a house.
Thank you for your efforts."
"Studying is indeed the most important thing. Brother Jin, if you can pass high school in one fell swoop, we won't be looked down upon by others in Xiahetun."
"Okay, I will be responsible for building the house. Brother Jin, just concentrate on your studies. You are a kind-hearted person. You will definitely be able to go to high school next year, and you will definitely prosper in the future."
After listening to Liu Jin's words, Uncle Zhou thought about it and finally nodded. Liu Jin had already brought up the matter of studying for the imperial examination, so naturally he couldn't say anything more.
In this era, taking the imperial examination is similar to the college entrance examination in later generations, or even more important. During this college entrance examination, everything must make way for the candidates.
The same is true now. Liu Jin will take the Qiuwei exam next year. This is a major event that affects whether he can pass the exam. When it comes to this matter, other things are irrelevant.
