Zhu Nao

"Haw, haw."

In the state capital compound, a middle-aged man with a big fat head was lying on the ground with his ass pouted, holding a handful of white rice in his hand, imitating its cry to a long-tailed chicken, trying to attract it.

The long-tailed chicken has brown-yellow feathers, a white crown on its head, and a meter-long tail. It is handsome, majestic, and extremely beautiful.It is also very proud, no matter how the man tries his best to lure it, it will hang around in the distance and refuse to go past.

The man was very patient, and moved towards the rare bird little by little. If it avoided it, he would go over again, vowing to get close to the rare bird and kiss its fragrance.

After playing the chasing game for a while, the long-tailed chicken didn't know whether it was hungry or lazy. When the man slowly approached, it didn't dodge.

Seeing that the rare bird was close at hand, the middle-aged man showed a kind smile on his face, and stretched out his hand cautiously, wanting to touch the rare bird's feathers...

"Zhou Mu! Song Zhou Mu!" A man with a mustache rushed into the yard in a hurry.

The long-tailed chicken was frightened, and immediately flapped its wings and jumped onto the branch, chirping and screaming.

Seeing that he was almost able to touch the bird's feathers just now, and was disturbed by others, Song Rentou, the state shepherd, was furious, and threw the white rice in his hand towards the mustache: "What is it called! Birds scare you away Already!"

The character mustache is Qian Qing, the chief registry officer under Song Rentou.He was opening his mouth to speak, when a handful of white rice hit his head and face, several grains entered his mouth and slid directly down his throat.He was choked and coughed repeatedly.

Song Rentou saw that his face was flushed from coughing, clicked his tongue a few times, and asked angrily, "Why are you so surprised?"

Qian Qing calmed down and said, "Zhou Mu, it's bad, Heishui Village in Yongning Township was slaughtered by Tulang Village!"

Song Rentou said in surprise: "What? There are bandits massacring the village again? Are those bandits crazy?! It's all about what happened last year... What kind of village has ruined the atmosphere!"

"...Last year, the village that slaughtered the village was also the village that slaughtered the wolf."

"Ah?" Song Rentou was taken aback, "Okay. It's them again!! Bastards!!"

After a pause, he suddenly remembered something: "No, I remember Tulangzhai. Didn't the soldiers be sent to suppress them half a year ago? Could it be that another cottage was suppressed?"

"..."

Qian Qing was speechless: "They are right. But half a year ago we failed to suppress the bandits. Hundreds of soldiers were killed and wounded, so we had to give up in the end. Zhou Mu, have you forgotten..."

Song Rentou: "..."

He was a little dizzy, thinking about the beautiful tail hair of the long-tailed chicken.After a long time, he came to his senses and probably understood what had happened.He asked Qian Qing blankly: "Then what should we do now?"

Qian Qing: "..."

After a stick of incense, all the staff of the state capital gathered around a table in the lobby.Everyone was talking about it.

"The Wolf Slaughter Village is really hateful. If they are allowed to go on unrestrained, the farmers will almost let them kill them!"

"Not only Tulang Village, but Changming Village is also very hateful! They are recruiting people everywhere, and a while ago, people from a village went to join them. If they go on, all the people who have not been killed by Tulang Village will be taken in by Changming Village It's over!"

"Besides them, there are many other small cottages that are also disgusting. They robbed and harassed the farmers, and drove them away. Many farmers couldn't stand the harassment, and they went into the mountains to become thieves!"

The crowd denounced bandits passionately, and finally came to a unanimous conclusion—the disaster of bandits must be cured.

So everyone turned their attention to Song Rentou in unison: "Songzhou Mu, hurry up and deal with the bandits!!"

Song Rentou was taken aback by the neat eyes, and hurriedly said: "Correction, of course we must. Hurry up and send troops to suppress the bandits."

Someone immediately objected: "It can't be suppressed. In the past few years, the bandits have been suppressed several times, and they have been defeated every time. Countless Xiang soldiers have been killed. In the past, there were more Xiang soldiers than bandits and they could not be suppressed. Now the number of those big villages has outnumbered the bandits." The Xiangbing is gone, how can we suppress it? If the entire army of the Xiangbing is wiped out, even the people who defend the state capital will be gone!"

When Taizu opened the dynasty, in order to prevent local separatism, military power was transferred to the imperial court, and local officials were not allowed to support soldiers.The state government has only one thousand soldiers to mobilize.However, the Xiang soldiers were not regular troops. They had to work in the fields during the busy farming hours, and only came to serve during the slack seasons. They were neglected in training and had little combat effectiveness at all.When they went to suppress bandits, if they suppressed small villages with few people, the bandits would hide in the mountains, and they would never be able to find them; This kind of ambush and trap, as soon as the two sides fought, the bandits killed the soldiers, and they were powerless to fight back.In the past few years of suppressing bandits, fewer and fewer soldiers have been suppressed, but more and more bandits have been suppressed.

Song Rentou looked dull: "If you can't suppress the bandits, how can you manage them?"

Qian Qing thought for a moment, and said, "The only solution right now is to recruit security."

As soon as this remark came out, several people objected.

"Recruit? No way! Those bandits committed heinous crimes and must be punished. Once they are recruited, how can there be legal principles in this world?!"

"Yes! Hundreds of villagers were massacred in Tulangzhai, how can we let them go? We should recruit soldiers from the common people to serve and continue to suppress the bandits. We must wipe them out!"

Song Rentou watched them quarreling boredly, and planned to wait for them to come to a unified opinion.He doesn't like to take care of these crap things very much, he just likes to tease rare birds.He came here to serve as an official just to increase his qualifications so that he can be transferred back to the capital to serve in the future.His term of office will expire next year, and he will be able to pat his ass and leave by then.

At this time, Qian Qing who was beside him suddenly stood up, startling him.

Qian Qing said: "Everyone, it's already at this time, so don't talk about legal principles! Do you know what the top priority is now? It's money, it's silver! Have you looked at the tax books? Last year's tax revenue in this state was lower than the previous year One-third, this year is half less than last year! Why? Because there are fewer and fewer farmers who can pay taxes!"

He took a deep breath, and continued: "Why are there fewer and fewer farmers? Bandits are causing disaster. The more bandits, the fewer common people. People are either killed by them or taken away by them. Go on, Next year’s taxes are not enough to pay you all. Therefore, the disaster of bandits must be resolved as quickly and smoothly as possible, so there is no better way than recruiting security!”

Someone wanted to refute, but Qian Qing didn't give him a chance, so he said in a hurry: "Recruiting security has many benefits. First, it reflects the kindness of the state shepherd. The bandits and the people will be grateful for their kindness, so they won't make trouble anymore; second, if we Insisting on suppressing bandits will definitely waste people and money, and even if the bandits are eliminated in the end, ordinary people will suffer heavy casualties. We can recruit bandits, give bandits some discounts, let them come back and continue to be farmers, and we can continue to collect their taxes. This It’s killing two birds with one stone.”

"There is also a third point. Bandits like Tulangzhai have high force. They are far more capable of fighting than Xiangbing. We recruit them back and directly organize them into Xiangbing. The state capital has an extra powerful army." Team. At that time, if other bandits dare to make trouble, why not just send them to attack? This is killing three birds with one stone!"

He made every statement, well-founded, and convinced many people.Opponents gradually died down.

However, there was still one person at the table who objected: "Of the three points you mentioned, only the second point is reasonable, and the other two points are not valid. If you really recruit those bandits, there will be endless troubles."

Qian Qing looked at the speaker in surprise.It was a thin and thin man, young, but with yellow beard and hair, he looked sickly.This person is just a small official in the state government, not an aide, and I don't know who called this person to participate in the discussion.

Qian Qing said unconvinced: "Why don't you take the other two points into account?"

The yellow-haired man was about to argue with him, but Song Rentou said, "Okay, okay, don't quarrel. I heard Master Qian's words made sense, so I will do as he says. Qian Qing, You go to write a call for security. What is the Wolf Slaughter Village, what is the Changming Village... Hurry up and recruit everyone, and stop making trouble!"

The crowd had been arguing for too long, and Song Rentou was getting impatient, and just wanted to go back and tease his precious chicken.Now that Qian Qing has convinced most people, that's fine. There's no need to quarrel endlessly over one or two different opinions, otherwise the quarrel will never end.

Hearing Song Rentou's decision, the yellow-haired man obviously disagreed with it, but gave up the dispute.He whispered to himself: "There will be chaos in Sichuan."

Qian Qing glared at him, didn't bother to answer him, and went to think about calling for peace.

=====

Two flowers bloom, one branch each.

Here, the tenants in Zhu Nao Village had a bumper harvest.

On this day, the brothers of the Wang family finished cutting their last crop of wheat, and went to help Shi San complete the autumn harvest. They finished their work at dusk, and went home with a cart full of grain.

Walking into the yard, the grain in the yard has been piled high.The two brothers unloaded what had just been transported from the car and threw it on the hill, building the hill a few feet higher.

After finishing his work, Wang Zhongqi took two steps back to admire the grain mountain.A few days ago, they were busy harvesting every day, and they didn't care to see how much they had harvested. Now that they have time to take a closer look, he was instantly excited: "Oh my god, there are so many!!"

Uncle Wang on the side didn't speak, and kept wiping his sweat with his hands.

"With so much wheat, the three hens in the family have started to lay eggs. From now on, we can make egg noodles every day." Wang Zhongqi swallowed involuntarily, "The egg noodles made by our mother used to be the best, but unfortunately there are no more I have time to learn how to do it from her... Oh, I really miss my mother..."

Uncle Wang was still wiping his sweat, but Wang Zhongqi noticed something was wrong, took a closer look, and said in surprise, "Brother, are you crying?"

Uncle Wang didn't want his younger brother to see him, so he quickly turned his back, rubbed his face vigorously, and calmed his breath: "No, no, dust got into his eyes."

It's a pity that he didn't believe it himself.

Wang Zhongqi looked at his elder brother, looked at the grain mountain, and had a sore nose: "Hey, I want to cry too. If my father and mother are still here, I must be very happy to see our current life."

They have been helping farmers at home since they were young, but they can't remember the last time they saw so much food.In the past, when the land was just ripe, the landlord sent people to supervise their harvesting, and the harvested crops were immediately taken away by the landlord.They worked hard for a whole year, and the final harvest was only enough to feed the family for two to three months. Before the winter was over, the family ran out of food.As long as they can remember, it seems that nothing new has been added to the house, but there are fewer and fewer old things.My father used to have an erhu, but later he sold it for food.

And the place they are in now, not to mention the fertile soil and water, more importantly, there is no exploitation by landlords, and no bandits.The food they collected was not only enough for themselves, but also a lot more.Enough for them to change money to buy something else, and even add a few more people to the family.

Wang Bozheng whispered: "I want to buy an erhu. I learned a little from my father when I was young, and I don't know if I can play it now."

The two brothers were feeling sad when they suddenly heard the sound of gongs outside.They quickly wiped away their tears and listened attentively.

It was the steward of the farm who issued a notice to let the tenants finish harvesting early, and he would start collecting the land rent three days later.

The two brothers have already prepared the matter of land rent.Since the land rent is one-tenth, the farmers will not share another share after all the harvest is completed, but divide the leased land into ten shares when harvesting, and the grain harvested from one share Stored separately, ready to hand over to the owner.

Wang Zhongqi couldn't help but said: "The owner of the village is really kind. When we got it done, he didn't send anyone to supervise."

Wang Bozheng agreed: "Yes. I still remember that landlord in the past, every time he sent people to watch over our harvest, he even fiddled with the scales and forced us to pay more rent."

Wang Zhongqi glanced at the grain that was going to pay the rent again, and suddenly became a little worried: "Brother, do you think the harvest of the land we are going to pay the rent will not be as good as the other pieces of land?"

Wang Bozheng was taken aback.When they planted the land, they all sowed and cultivated in the same way, so it stands to reason that each piece of land should be similar.But when you think about it, the crops in that field don't seem to grow as strong as the other fields.Although the owner of the farm asked them to pay the rent consciously, everyone knew the approximate number of harvests from a piece of land.If they really pay less, will the dealer think they are dishonest?Will the dealer be disappointed with them?

After thinking for a while, Uncle Wang walked over, and put a few piles of wheat on the field rent to be paid: "This should be almost the same."

Wang Zhongqi thought for a while, and carried a few piles over: "This year the bandits have not come to rob us of our things. I heard that the owner spent a lot of money to appease the bandits. The money is for us. , we should pay more attention."

The two brothers looked at it for a while and felt that it was almost done, so they went to rest contentedly.

……

Three days later, when the steward was collecting the land rent, Zhu Nao also came to the farm.

Before the tenants came to pay the rent, the manager was still very worried, and kept complaining to Zhu Nao: "The landlord, your heart is too big. The land rent in our village is not collected according to the fixed amount, but the real income. , then you should find someone to watch and see how much each household has received. If you don’t send someone to watch, then the harvest is as much as the tenants say. If they underreport or omit the report, we will take them There is no way at all!"

Zhu Nao said: "If I send people to watch every household, wouldn't I have to hire a lot of people? Doesn't it cost money to hire people?"

The steward didn't understand: "The owner of the farm was so willing to spend money when he hired doctors for the tenants, why now..."

Zhu Nao said: "Spend the money that is worth spending, and don't waste the money that is not worth spending."

Although the fact is that it is not clear what the standard is for whether the owner is worth it or not.He has been in charge of farming for many years, and has contacted several landlords.In his opinion, spending money to treat tenants' diseases is inexplicable, and the money for supervising Nongsang has to be spent.In case the tenant evades rent, wouldn't the landlord suffer a lot!

He muttered and nagged endlessly, and Zhu Nao was annoyed by his nagging, and shook his head and said, "Okay. When the tenants come to pay the grain later, just look at it. Pay less and pay more, can't you see it?"

The steward thought about it, and felt that it was true. Although the real income is calculated, everyone should know how many mu of land a family leases and how much food they can harvest.If someone is really dishonest and the rent paid is obviously less than what should be paid, then don't blame him for embarrassing that dishonest guy in public!

Not long after, the tenants came one after another with their carts carrying grain.

The steward took the roster and checked them one by one: "One household in Zhaoling, renting fifteen acres of land." He raised his head and saw the grain truck pushed by the other party, obviously stunned for a moment.Is this the rent of [-] acres of land?Looking at it like this, why does it feel more than ah?

He pointed to the scale next to him suspiciously: "Get on the scale and have a look."

Zhao Ling poured the grain into the big basket, and the steward was startled when he saw the number on the scale: "Five hundred catties?!"

According to his experience, if one-tenth of [-] mu of land can yield [-] catties, it is considered a good harvest.But it was a full quarter more than he expected?He repeatedly confirmed the number of acres of leased land on the roster and the number on the scale, and finally had to admit that not only did he pay less, but he also paid a lot more.

Zhao Ling said: "Brother in charge, if there is no problem, I will leave first?"

The steward nodded, and blankly wrote down the land rent paid by Zhao Ling in the booklet.

After Zhao Ling registered at the steward's office, he ran up to Zhu Nao with a basket of eggs, and stuffed the basket into his arms: "Master, keep it and take it home to eat."

Zhu Nao looked at the foolish smile on the other side's face, and smiled back: "Thank you, then I won't be polite."

Zhao Ling waved his hands again and again: "No, no, no, don't thank me, it should be. Our whole family is grateful to you!"

After Zhao Ling left, the tenants rented out the fields one by one.

The second pays more than the average...the third still pays more than the average...every household pays more than the average!

The steward felt incredible at first, and even wondered if there was something wrong with the scale.Immediately afterwards, he wondered whether this year was a bumper year, and the harvest in the field increased dramatically.However, the strength of the soil is there, and it is impossible to increase it no matter how much it increases.What's more, there are more people, and some people are less, but without exception, they are more than the average.

It wasn't until receiving the sixth household that the steward finally realized that these tenants had not only not evaded rent, but had paid more rent on purpose!

He thought to himself: This farm, from the owner to the tenants, is not a normal person!

……

As soon as Zhu Nao finished collecting the land rent, Yu Changming came to the door.

The tea trees on the hilltop of Changmingzhai were newly planted last year, so they haven't matured yet.However, although no tea is produced, there are many other gains.After Yu Changming subdued the bandits in Longcheng Mountain, almost all the mountains in Yilong were under his control.All kinds of mountain products were delivered to Zhu Nao in an endless stream, as well as precious salt.

Mountain products are second to none. Since the cooperation with Changming Village, Zhu Nao's business has expanded a lot.

Since the road at the foot of Longcheng Mountain is a very important trade route, many caravans have to pass through here.In the past, they could pass through Changming Village smoothly after paying money, but this year it was not so smooth.

If they compete with Zhu Nao in business, the thieves in Changming Village will block the passage and not rob, but they will not let it go. Want to pass?Please detour.Once this passage was blocked, the caravans would not be unable to get through, but they had to take another detour.The cost will increase a lot if a large group of people detours for a few days.As a result, their profits will be reduced, or they will have to raise their prices. Over time, they will naturally be unable to compete with Junao.

Zhu Nao led Yu Changming into the yard, took out an account book, and typed it with the abacus. After typing, he pushed the account book and Yu Changming in front of him: "This is the share of this season. If Brother Yu has any doubts, you can do the calculation again. "

When Yu Changming saw that number, his eyelids twitched.In the past, he had been living a life of careful budgeting, and he had to save as much as possible in order to feed a large village.But now, with this income, not only does he no longer need to be frugal, he can even squander his little days!

He didn't recalculate, he didn't even look at the details of the account, he just pushed back the account book and the abacus to Jun Nao: "No, I trust you."

Zhu Nao smiled, put away the ledger, and asked, "Do you want money or food?"

Yu Changming said: "You give me four-fifths of the grain at the price. Give me one-fifth of the money."

Zhu Nao was a little surprised: "You want so much food? Are there new recruits on the mountain?"

Yu Changming nodded: "Recently, seventy or eighty people from Yilong have come to join us. When the winter is free, I plan to lead people to dig a few more salt wells."

In Changming Village, there is no need to worry about too many people not being able to afford food.On the contrary, the more people there are and the more labor force they have, the more things they can do.

"Seventy or eighty more?" Zhu Nao laughed and said, "If this goes on, you will soon have all the people in Yilong under your command. If I were a state official, I might not even be able to sleep."

Yu Changming disdained: "If you were a state official, there would be no Changming Village in the first place."

Even Zhu Nao couldn't help being slightly taken aback when he said this.

When Yu Changming was about to leave, Zhu Nao asked Yu Changming to take back some of the chicken, duck and poultry eggs sent by the tenants.The tenants gave him so many presents that he could eat until next year.Yu Changming was also polite, and after accepting it, he politely took out two sticks of wild ginseng as a gift in return.If he hadn't insisted that he never dug up more wild ginseng, Zhu Nao might have buried him with chicken, duck and poultry eggs, forcing him to hand over all the wild ginseng...