Emperor Ming Dynasty

In the early spring season, the wind is wrapped in coolness, passing by the green wheat, setting off a wave, which is pleasing to the eye.

Chen Ergou was sitting on the ridge of the field, shirtless, wearing a half-worn ragged jacket, half of the reed wadding stuffed inside was exposed. He had no scruples, staring at the grasshopper in his hand, unable to stop no matter what.

At this moment, he thought in his heart, should he braise it in soy sauce, or fish it directly?
It's the most difficult time when you don't pick up.

Half a child, eating a poor old man, no matter how much he fills his stomach, he still feels hungry.

Next to him, there are patches of farmland, dotted with thatched huts, small bridges and flowing water in the distance, and on the grassy slopes of the river bank, cattle bow their heads to graze, mooing from time to time.

Not far away, several children were tossing back and forth beside the scalper, very active.

Smoke and dogs bark, forming a rural scenery in the north.

Beside a nearby pond, several children were happily fishing, but unfortunately the muddy water made them catch nothing.

As for fishing in the river, one has to pass the check of the river patrol elder. He holds a flat stick in his hand and swings it when he encounters children coming over.

Therefore, Chen Ergou had nothing to think about, either went to the pond to touch fish, or fished.

His little head couldn't stop thinking about it, and it was chilly underneath, making him scratch it.

"Two dogs, two dogs—"

Suddenly, a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy wearing a broken straw hat shouted while running:

"A letter from your family has arrived, and your brother's letter has returned—"

Chen Ergou turned his head sharply, grabbed the grasshopper in his hand, and then got up all at once, with loess and grass stuck to his body.

His eldest brother, in his 20s, has no wife yet, so he joined the so-called army and went to the Northeast. In the past few years, he has sent back a lot of money and improved his family's life.

The one with the letter went to the market in the town.

Over the past 300 years, the Ming Dynasty has established a post station system, and it has been continuously repaired in recent years, showing great vitality.

Moreover, with the establishment of the township sanlao, the township-level administrative organization was gradually recognized.

The township governs a dozen or even dozens of villages, and the county's civil letter bureau sends people to each township to deliver letters.

When people in the village go to the market, they will also ask someone to receive the letter.

"okay--"

Er Gou hurriedly took the wooden box, and then shouted: "The copper plate will be given to your family later."

"No need, just take the eggs." The boy said without thinking, and then jumped into the distance, calling for relatives and friends.

Among the folks, copper plates are precious items for paying taxes and buying things in the city, and eggs are the most commonly used substitutes.

Chen Ergou sighed, three eggs, and he won't be able to eat them these two days.

But with the wooden box in his pocket, he was extremely happy, not knowing what his elder brother sent back.

Although there was no rattling sound inside, he was full of anticipation in his heart.

After bouncing around for a while, I returned to the village, and after going around three times, I came to a remote thatched cottage.

The gate of the half-old courtyard was neatly tidied up, with only some mud and chicken droppings conspicuous, which is very common in rural areas.

In front of and behind the house, a lot of vegetables are planted. This is the main dish at home. Wild vegetables are hard to find at this time, after all, there are few mountains in the north.

Dad weeds behind the house, while mother tidies up inside.

The seven or eight-year-old Ergou couldn't help, so he could only play around.

Although his name was Ergou, the elder brothers in front had died long ago, and the five or six-year-old younger brothers and sisters in the back were messing with mud in the yard.

"Father, mother, there is a letter from elder brother!"

Ergou's roar shook the whole room.

"Second brother, second brother—" several younger brothers and sisters jumped and shouted happily.

Although they didn't understand the meaning of the letter when they were young, they knew that they could eat good food again.

The father and mother put down their work and came over impatiently, and saw the wooden box in his arms at a glance.

Dad snatched it away, and then went back to the room with mother to read it carefully.

After a long time, Dad came out: "Go, go to the entrance of the village and find Mr. Zhao—"

There are not many literate people in the village, and Mr. Zhao, who studies sociology, is one of the few scholars.

Sociology, after the village gradually recovered, a few families with big surnames raised money to re-run the society school, which is located in the ancestral hall.

Soon, the whole family held their chests high. Although the clothes on their bodies were shabby, they were not timid at all.

Along the way, relatives and friends in the village showed envious eyes:

"Big head Chen, your eldest son sent a letter back—"

"Yeah, I just sent it back." Chen's big head held his head high, his face full of pride.

"It's great, I don't know if there is something good to send home. If I have this son, it will be worth ten years of my life."

When they came to Sociology, the attitude of the family changed immediately.

He held his head high before, but now he bent over and hooked his back, and his attitude was not to mention very respectful.

And in their hands, they carried two eggs.

Mr. Zhao wears a long robe, which is well-washed and has a slightly rosy face, which is very different from the poverty and thinness of ordinary people in the countryside.

The whole person showed an extraordinary temperament.

Even if he is a scholar who is not even a child.

But, after all, they are scholars.

In the prosperity after the troubled times, the importance of scholars has once again increased.

He squinted and saw that it was the Chen family, and he knew in his heart that it was a letter, so he sat down calmly and waited for the family to arrive.

Chen Ergou is like his family members, his eyes are full of reverence, and his body is half an inch shorter unconsciously.

He has no doubt that as long as his attitude is a little disrespectful, his father's slap will come immediately.

In his father's words, in the near future, Mr. Zhao will be a master official, a Wenqu star in the sky, and he will be more respectful than the patriarch.

"Mr. Zhao, this is another letter from my son..."

With his big head, Chen wiped his rough palm on the clothes, even though it had already been washed white.

Carefully take away the letter.

Mr. Zhao didn't even bat an eyelid, and said directly: "Don't bring anything here next time, such a trivial matter is not worth it."

That's what he said, but when the eggs were placed on the table, he didn't move his butt at all, he just took the letter and read it carefully.

After a while, he was startled and shouted: "Big head Chen, your eldest son is coming back."

"Back?" Chen's big head didn't turn the corner for a while.

"Isn't it three years? Chen Xin has been in the army for half a year in Liaodong, Northeast China. He said that he has reclaimed thousands of acres of land, and the court gave him a hundred acres. Now that he has developed, he wants to bring his family there... ..."

The Construction Corps in the Northeast is a variant of the migrating common people.

Recruit rural youths to join the army, let them reclaim land, build frontiers, and then use the land to lure their family to relocate.

Compared with the direct forced migration before, I don't know how many times better.

After all, breaking a family is worth tens of thousands of gold, plus the involvement of clan in-laws, etc., which time didn't it make people panic all day long?
Moreover, doing so would be extremely costly for the court, and it would be of no benefit to the people or the court.

However, by recruiting troops and indirect immigration, this matter can be handled very well, and it is more relaxed.

"Hey, one hundred acres—"

Chen's head was shocked.

Even though there were countless deaths and injuries during the war in Shandong, and a large number of people were plundered to Liaodong, the per capita land area was very small, and the good time for opening up wasteland and farming has long passed.

In the village, the Chen family only has ten acres of land at most, and all of it is dry land.

"Mr. Zhao, is this one hundred acres of land dry or irrigated?" Zhao head couldn't help laughing.

"It's watering the ground." Mr. Zhao shook his head and smiled, "He's going to take you there to enjoy the blessings."

"There are Tartars in Liaodong..."

Chen's big head suddenly shrank his neck, and said in fear.

"Which year is this old story?"

Mr. Zhao said in a deep voice: "Liaodong is very stable. The frontier is Jilin, and Liaodong is inland. It is much better than Shandong."

Chen Datou couldn't help but be overjoyed.

One hundred acres of land, isn't this a small landlord in my hometown?
At that time, it will be ready for the second child to study.

As he spoke, he looked at Ergou with anticipation on his face.

As long as there is a scholar in the family, he will immediately become a master.

By then, the Chen family will also be a big family.

The more he thought about it, the happier he was.

When the family returned home, they happily welcomed the return of the eldest son.

Sure enough, half a month later, Chen Dagou, that is, Chen Xin, returned home in a bullock cart with large and small parcels.

It has only been three years since I left, and the fence yard at home has been turned into an earthen wall, and several dilapidated houses that leaked from the rain have also been renovated.

There are vegetables in front of and behind the house, and a few chickens are clucking, full of vigilance for the arrival of strangers.

"Father, when did our family start a chicken farm?"

Chen Dagou was dressed in a padded jacket, wrapped tightly, his face was flushed, and his tall figure looked extremely burly.

Compared with the thin and dry one before, it was like a different person.

"Six months after you left, when the money was sent, I raised it."

Chen's big head followed behind his son, full of joy:

"I guess it's been two and a half years since I raised it, and the whole thing is clucking, but the eggs are laying well. You can try it later, and I'm sure it's different from Liaodong."

"Yeah!" Chen Dagou nodded affirmatively: "Your chicken feet are all black when exposed, so it must be delicious."

It is rare for a family to reunite, and the table is full of dishes.

Not to mention pickles, a plate of bacon and a plate of eggs are the biggest dishes on the table.

The younger brothers and sisters swallowed and fought, their eyeballs almost popping out.

But Niang pulled a few people and scolded in a low voice: "This is for big brother."

Chen Dagou put the meat and vegetables into the bowls of his brother, sister, father and mother without mercy, and said: "Although the salary is not much in the army, but there is no need to worry about food and drink. There is not much else in Liaodong, except for a lot of meat. "

"There are rabbits, wild boars, roe deer, and deer all over the mountains and plains. If you catch them casually, you can eat them for days. The fish in the water are as fat as dogs, half the size of a human..."

According to Chen Dagou's description, Liaodong is basically better than Shandong except that it is colder in winter.

This made all the brothers and sisters greedy.

Speaking of the [-] mu of land, he raised his head and said, "It's all good irrigated land. After two years of land reclamation, it will be mature land next year."

"No matter how bad it is, it can keep our family from starving to death."

Unexpectedly, his father raised his head and asked an irrelevant question: "Are there many teachers in Liaodong?"

"Although it can't compare with our Shandong, there are still some."

Chen's big head showed a disappointed expression: "If Ergou can't hire a good gentleman, how will he study in the future?"

"Father, you forgot, there are few people in Liaodong!"

Chen Dagou hurriedly said: "In our county, there are thousands of test children, but in Liaodong, there are at most a hundred."

"As long as Ergou works a little harder, he can become the master of Tongsheng, and if he works harder at that time, he will be a scholar—"

"Hic—" When he heard Mr. Xiucai, Chen's head hiccupped instantly, and a rush of heat rushed to the back of his head, and he almost fell down.

Thanks to Chen Dagou's quick response, he helped him up.

"Mr. Xiucai, Mr. Xiucai, if the second dog is really successful, our family will be completely revived..."

Nowadays, with the implementation of the provincial examination, a large number of scholars have entered the county government to serve as clerks and contractors.

The scholar, on the other hand, is the seed player of the provincial test. Once referenced, it is almost impossible to be dismissed.

As long as you can compete for the top three, you can make an exception and serve as the county magistrate.

In other words, it is not easy for a scholar to be an official. Having the fame of a scholar is equivalent to half an official.

Officials and civilians are different in one word, and their treatment varies widely.

"Move, our whole family has to move." Chen head hurriedly said.

"What about the field at home?"

"Sell it, go to Liaodong to buy it again, the land there is cheap—"

All of a sudden, the atmosphere of the whole family changed instantly, and it became even more noisy.

Migrating to Liaodong has become an unstoppable topic at home.

In fact, the first wave of Construction Corps returned home one after another, setting off a wave of migration.

Tens of thousands of families want to migrate to Liaodong.

Liaodong was overjoyed.

This wave can bring at least one hundred thousand people.

The attention of the government and the public.

At this time, Jilin General Xin Wencheng, Heilongjiang General, and Wang Shiguo followed the footsteps of spring and embarked on the journey back to Beijing.

It is interesting to say that Xin Wencheng set off from Shenyang, and then arrived in the capital through the Liaoxi Corridor.

Wang Shiguo, on the other hand, took a boat directly to Tianjin Port and arrived in Beijing one step faster than him.

Of course, what is eye-catching is that on the way back to Beijing, he carried countless furs, which were worth thousands of gold. The accumulation of his wealth made many people salivate.

At this time, everyone realized that the hardships in Heilongjiang and Jilin can actually be overcome.

Wang Shiguo came to report first, and he reported with a smile on his face:

"After the completion of Heilongjiang City, 2 people have settled down, the army has 3000 people, and the number of tributary tribes has exceeded 3, totaling [-] people."

"The taxes are thanks to the docks and ports. They can collect hundreds of thousands of money every year, which is more than enough to support the army. In the end, they will continue to send people north and west to find other tribes."

"I intend to rebuild the old city of Nu'ergan and call for the power of the Ming Dynasty."

"Xincheng?" The emperor was a little surprised: "The imperial court doesn't have that much money and food."

"Your Majesty, I have calculated it, 20 yuan is enough, and the General's Mansion can pay half of it."

At this moment, how could Zhu Yixi fail to understand that Heilongjiang Mansion obviously had no shortage of money.

Its development is particularly gratifying.