However, it was said that Su Cheng had frightened the Xiaoque family and their neighbors, and he pretended to be calm and ran away from Nail Lane. In fact, he had broken out in a cold sweat and was trembling slightly when he left the alley. He slowly walked around with his hands behind his hands, thinking carefully about today's events.
The reason why I was trapped was because I underestimated the enemy. I only thought about Xiaoque, who was just a little daughter. Her family was also an ordinary person, and she was carrying weapons and guns, so she had no problem. Therefore, she acted recklessly. If the man hadn't stepped forward just now, he would have been able to do so.
If you take the opportunity to scare people, you may not know what will happen.
While I was thinking about it, I saw a green-covered carriage parked beside the small street at the entrance of the alley, running towards Su Cheng. The carriage driver took off his bamboo hat, and it was the guy from Jia's Horse Racing Company. This man jumped out of the car.
Come and hold your hand: "Miss Zhang."
Su Cheng understood immediately: "Shopkeeper Zhou asked you to follow me?"
The waiter smiled and said: "Girl, you are so talented, you managed to get away on your own. I was thinking of going in to rescue you later."
Su Cheng breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you! I was so scared just now. If I had known you were outside, I wouldn't be scared."
The waiter couldn't help laughing and said: "The girl told Shopkeeper Zhou that you were going to visit a coworker's house, so he guessed that the female worker wanted to coax you to go home and become your aunt or sister-in-law."
Su Cheng frowned: "Shopkeeper Zhou didn't know which worker's house I was going to visit. It turns out that this kind of thing is not unique to Nail Alley."
The waiter said: "If poor people can't find a wife, they usually resort to these two methods. Either exchange the bride or steal the bride."
"More than one house, more than one lane, more than one city."
The clerk nodded: "This is true throughout the province."
"Oh my God!" Su Cheng looked at the sky, "Why are people so poor?"
There was a hint of fun in the waiter's eyes: "Even if Mr. Su is the reincarnation of Bao Qingtian, there is nothing he can do after three or five years of fear."
Su Cheng thought for a while: "That's not a problem. At least we have a population. In the early years, Taiwan was surrounded by deserts. Didn't it get better in three to five years? It's just... we have to let the people recuperate." She climbed directly onto the carriage.
The waiter looked at her in surprise, then sat in front, shook off his riding crop, and said casually: "Does the girl have any ideas?"
"I probably have some ideas. I still need to discuss it with Mr. Su."
The waiter looked back at Nail Alley and wondered: "How on earth did the girl get out? I can't imagine that they would let you go."
Su Cheng smiled and said, "I scared them and said I was going to sue the officials."
"Are you serious about suing?"
"I want to wait and see first." Su Cheng thought to himself, "I just said those words, and among the people listening there was a young daughter-in-law. Let's wait a few days and see if anyone wakes up." Then he smiled bitterly and said, "I
When I was young, I heard my uncle say, 'Sorrow for someone's misfortune, anger for someone who doesn't fight', but I just heard it. Now I understand what it means." He sighed softly, "These eight words are really good. Those eight words are really good.
Most of the wives who were deceived actually accepted their fate."
"Most likely?" said the waiter, "How can one refuse to accept one's fate? Besides, it's hard to have food to eat when you get to your husband's house - the daughter-in-law who was so easily cheated cannot starve to death. Who will have grandchildren if she starves to death? It's just that her mother's family is unlucky and can't take care of her.
It’s just a betrothal gift.”
"That's right. I forgot about this part." Su Cheng shook his head, "Then there's no need to expect them to file a complaint."
The waiter said, "Otherwise, it's not like we're a hundred thousand miles away from home. It wouldn't be easy to escape?" He waved his arm and urged the carriage to leave.
The carriage creaked and creaked for a while. The man pulled the reins slightly, and the horse ran slower. He said: "Miss Zhang, shopkeeper Zhou said that after I rescue you from the female worker's house, I might as well take you to have a look."
Bodhi Corner. Now that you came out on your own, are you still going?"
"Bodhi Corner? Where?"
"Most of the refugees from last year's flood, including the old, weak, sick and disabled, are there. Occasionally, rich people will send people there to give them food and clothing."
Su Cheng took a breath and thought for a moment: "I can't go today. Even if I want to go, I can't just go." The waiter tilted his head, and you could see some disappointment just by looking at the back of his head. Su Cheng explained, "You can probably think of it.
What does it look like? When you are extremely poor, you steal your wife, and when you are extremely hungry, God knows what you will do. I have just made the mistake of wearing a white dragon fish suit, and I cannot do it again. In two days, I will ask a friend to give porridge, and I will mix in the work.
It’s good inside.”
The waiter was silent for a moment and said: "That's fine. Girl, go eat less."
Su Cheng squinted her eyes and looked at the man's back. She couldn't see any of his expressions, but she actually felt that the guy was gloating about his misfortune. She sighed softly and said to herself: "Anyway, it's bad enough. If it gets any worse, it will be just like that."
"
The waiter finally couldn't help but sneered: "Not necessarily." Su Cheng covered his eyes with his hands and leaned against the carriage to pretend to be dead for the time being.
The next day, Su Cheng still pretended to be a servant and asked shopkeeper Zhou to borrow a carriage. Zhou Zhangui looked at her with a smile and ordered the waiter who recognized her to go with her. Su Cheng took the car straight to Tianning Temple in the southern suburbs. When they arrived at the temple,
, Zhenming was sitting under the tree having tea. He was slightly shocked when he saw her: "You didn't run to the capital?"
"No." Su Cheng pursed his lips, "I went to help my father understand the sentiments of the people. I thought what I saw was extremely bad, but I heard that it was even worse. Taoist priest, do you know about Bodhi Corner?"
"I've heard of it." Zhenming said, "In the old years when floods hit the refugees, the men became bandits and the women were sold. Most of the ones who had no strength and couldn't sell were squeezed in and lived there. The poor man knew that he was powerless.
I’ve never been there to see it.”
Su Cheng drooped his head: "No matter how bad it is, you have to go and see what it's like. I don't dare to go by myself. Can you always help me donate some porridge? Even if it's hell on earth, I'll take a look."
Zhenming looked at her and said, "After all, you are not Mr. Su."
"He is busy asking questions now and has no time to care about anything else; I might as well go and set up an outpost first. Besides, I have lived in luxury since I was a child and have not known the sufferings of the world. I want to see what the world is like." Su Chengtuo.
She pursed her cheeks and said, "Lest I be so ignorant and make people laugh at me." She muttered for a while and then added, "You can tell by looking at my back that you are laughing at my ignorance."
Zhenming laughed a few times, then thought for a moment and said, "You can go see it if you really want to. I'll let the Taoist priest from Guanzhong preside over it, and I'll accompany you."
Su Cheng giggled and said, "I knew you were the best~~"
Zhenming was old and liked children. He was happy to see her smile. He called two Taoist priests and ordered one of them to go to several big restaurants to order rice for tomorrow, and the other to go to Youmin Temple to discuss borrowing a big pot. He turned back to
Su Cheng explained: "It is much faster to cook porridge with rice. We are small and the pot is not big. Youmin Temple is a big temple and the pot is big enough. I can't buy a few big pots just because of this." Su Cheng explained.
Cheng nodded. Zhenming asked, "Are you okay today?"
Su Cheng thought for a moment and didn't want to go to the horse shop to see Xiaoque again, so he said, "No."
"Well, you go out for a walk with me."
Zhenming then changed out of his Taoist robe and pretended to be a businessman, and asked Su Cheng to go to the kitchen and wipe some pot ashes. Su Cheng was clever this time. He wiped his face, neck, and arms; after thinking about it, he rolled up his trouser legs from ankles to calves.
After smearing it evenly, he wiped some more on his trouser legs and ran back to see Zhenming. Zhenming smiled, shook his head, pointed at his trouser legs and said, "It's superfluous. I'm pretending to be a businessman instead of a farmer, just because you can't do anything.
You can't pretend to be a farm girl. The rich man brought a maid who looks very well-behaved. How can her clothes be unclean?" Su Cheng said "ah" and hurriedly patted his trouser legs, but couldn't do it clean for a while. Zhenming said again
, "That's all, it's not just to perform for others." Su Cheng was a bit sarcastic.
The two left the Taoist temple and got on the carriage of Jia's Horse Racing Company. Zhenming ordered: "Go to Sugar Cane Slope." The driver looked back at the old man and waved his whip in agreement.
Su Cheng asked: "Is Sugar Cane Slope planted with sugar cane?"
"No." Zhen Ming said, "The name just happens to be Sugar Cane Slope."
"oh……"
The carriage bumped and bumped, and Su Cheng was about to fall apart. Zhenming looked at her and said with a smile, "It's not like you haven't traveled far before."
Su Cheng said with a bitter face: "Uncle Master and the others who used to ride in the four-wheel carriage with rubber tires and shock-absorbing springs sent them when they went out, and they also traveled on the official road..."
Zhenming shook his head: "It may not be a good thing if you live too comfortably." Su Cheng had no energy to speak and lay in the car. Zhenming ignored her.
After walking for more than half an hour, the carriage stopped and the driver from the front said: "Old man, we're here."
Zhenming just got out of the car, while Su Cheng struggled behind for a long time before holding on to the wall of the car and moving out. Zhenming frowned: "You are a young man, but your body is worse than my old bones."
Su Cheng said feebly: "Are you always an ordinary old man..." The waiter was holding back laughter.
Zhenming disliked her for a long time and said, "Girl Chen is about the same age as you."
Su Cheng was about to cry but couldn't cry: "Third Aunt Cong is your old colleague! Can I compete with her in physical strength?"
"That's all, come with me, faster." Zhenming said as he walked away. Su Cheng gritted his teeth and followed behind. The man left the carriage and followed to watch the excitement.
The name of this sugar cane slope is Slope, which is actually a small hill. It is quite high. The three of them climbed for half a day before they reached the halfway point. They heard the sound of people in front of them and it was very lively. Su Cheng stretched his neck unknowingly. He climbed up again.
After a while, I could gradually see the crowd. It was like a fight. It seemed that there was more than one group of people, there were thirteen or four people, holding sticks and fighting in a ball. I didn’t know who was fighting whom. There were constant roars and there were many people.
They were all covered in colors. Su Cheng pulled Zhen Ming and said, "Taoist Master, this is..."
Zhenming said nothing and led her forward. Those people were focused on fighting, as if they hadn't seen them. The three of them walked around the crowd and walked to the back. They saw a spring in the mountain spurting water out. It was clear and lovely.
Zhenming pointed to the spring and said: "Three surnames in Sugar Cane Ridge all rely on this spring water to live their lives. Every now and then, they get into fights over the water."
Su Cheng was shocked: "Such a small amount of water? Are you kidding? Don't they dig wells?"
Zhenming said: "For some reason, none of the three families dug a well. There was a spring at the other end of the sugar cane slope, which became a big stream. It was originally used by these families. Later, a big family in the city took over the stream to build a separate courtyard. They were not allowed to
They moved, and then they found this place again."
Su Cheng gritted his teeth: "Whose family?"
"The other courtyard of the Lao family was built for Lao Fu He. Lao Fu He only came to stay twice."
"Lao Shangshu's provincial residence?" Su Cheng looked at the dozen or so men huddled together, "There must be more than one or two such things."
Zhen Ming said: "If there is no stream in the courtyard, it will not look good."
Su Cheng choked for a while and said feebly: "I know what you mean..."
Zhenming sighed: "It's hard for you. When dealing with the Xie family, he could steal the shop without hesitation. It's not easy for other families. Many cases, even if they are not household matters, are difficult for honest officials to resolve. For example, the stream was originally the work of others.
The family bought land and spent a lot of money to build a yard. Relying on the friendship between Rongguo Mansion and Lao Shangshu, it was not difficult to ask them to release the stream. This happened to be the Lao family, and there were other houses elsewhere, so where could they go?
Relying on favors? You can’t just happen to find favors in every household. It’s really hard for you, me.”
Su Cheng took a while and then moved the corner of his mouth: "I didn't plan to make him unhappy...he locked me up! I can't just lock him up at home just to make him happy."
Zhenming smiled: "I know you girl can't be locked up. You have to understand that if you don't want me to lock you up, you have to know what's going on outside. You're still young."
Su Cheng thought: "Asking for favors is not the way to go. And I don't think things like spring water should be owned by anyone. They should be owned by the state."
The guy said from behind: "Since the land can be purchased by private individuals, why can't the spring water be purchased?"
After a while, Su Cheng pursed his lips and said: "It seems to make sense... Therefore, we should still find well water for the three of them. Since there are two springs, there must be an underground river. Drilling a well is the right way."
Zhenming added: "Actually, if three families share the water of this spring, they can grow enough food. But if taxes are added, it will not be enough."
Su Cheng smiled and said: "This is easy to handle. Now I just say that Jiangxi has been severely damaged by bandits, and there is no green forest business. Just ask the court for tax exemption."
The clerk sneered: "Tax-free? What did the girl say?"
When Su Cheng mentioned this, he immediately laughed and became more energetic. He waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, wasn't there a flood last year? It's very easy to find an excuse for tax exemption. My father is the best at writing excerpts. King Yan doesn't
Pointing to the money envoy from Jiangxi. Besides, when commercial taxes are raised in the future, agricultural taxes can also be made up."
Zhenming thought for a moment and said seriously: "Girl, let me ask you. Is it possible to exempt agricultural taxes?"
Su Cheng said: "I know that in the early years when the Taiwan government opened up wasteland, it exempted agricultural taxes. Now that the whole province is so poor, it is impossible to survive without exempting agricultural taxes. Agricultural taxes must be exempted, but we only have to wait and see how many years they are exempted."
Zhenming nodded: "As long as you understand this."
But someone noticed them at this moment. A man jumped over and asked, "What do you do?"
Su Cheng rushed to say, "My master wants to buy the Lao family's house and use the water there for everyone to use. But you have to open some new hillsides to plant Western potatoes. Are you willing?"
The man was startled and shouted: "What did you say?!" The shout caused all the people fighting to stop.
Su Cheng shouted again: "Uncles and brothers! My master intends to buy the Lao family's house and let you use the stream they hold, but you have to plant some Western potatoes. Are you willing?" Everyone was willing to do it?
Stunned.
Zhenming stroked his beard and said: "My old man is in the Western potato business. Western potatoes don't need fertile land, just thin land. They can be grown on any land in the mountains. Just plant them, and I'll pay for them. I'll also drain the water there."
Give it to each family."
Another man covered his arm and shouted: "Are you serious about letting us use water?"
"That's right. But you have to plant potatoes for me."
The man said "ouch": "Yes - we are willing -" Suddenly everyone shouted in unison, "Yes -" "We are willing -"