Three Philosophical Questions for Travelers

"You're right, but my time is really..." He sighed, feeling like an incompetent father who neglected his children because of work.A man who doesn't take care of his family is not a man at all—this is from the Godfather movie, and Hai Wen takes it very seriously.

I'm definitely not doing it right - I'm just plain stupid!I took a little girl who was less than ten years old to a strange place, and then I didn't care about it, and let her be alone for two days?He felt more and more self-blaming, and I also said that I would treat her as my own daughter, I really...

"Tell Mir, I'll be waiting for him in the new study." Haven and Violet said.As soon as Violet nodded and said "yes", Hyacinth shouted: "Understood my lord!" After saying that, she ran down the stairs like the wind, and then there was the sound of being turned on its back and screams of pain, but two seconds later the running The voice echoed in the corridor again.

It's good to be young.Haiwen thought to himself, if I had crossed over to such a capable and handsome young man like Fassnut, I would have smashed the baron's dog's head.Thinking of this, he touched his bald head—it was still shiny, and he nodded in satisfaction.

Afterwards, he called Isrit, the housekeeper, Violet and others to the study, and he wanted to introduce each family member to Mirsalu.Not long after, Hyacinth came with little Mir.Seeing so many people in the study, Mirsalu was a little scared for a while, so she shrank into Hyacinth's arms. At this time, Haiwen went up and squatted in front of her, saying, "Daughter, it's me."

"Dad?" She looked at Haven with those big eyes.

Mirsalu was dirty when she first arrived, like an ugly duckling; now she has been washed and put on new clothes, and she has two braids, but she is still not good-looking.Mirsalu is a girl from a poor family, just like those ordinary girls from a poor family. She was thin due to long-term malnutrition, her skin was yellow and dry, her face was too sharp and narrow, and her nose and mouth were shrunk inward. together.But Hai Wen didn't mind, because he was not good-looking.What's more, Mirsalu's eyes are very attractive. When she looked at Haiwen with these big eyes, he felt his heart was about to melt.

"It's me, Mir." He took the little girl's hand, "Come on, let me introduce you to our family."

He first introduced Isrit and the housekeeper, both of whom were acquainted by Little Mill.Isrit was the first person to entertain her, and she was also her adoptive mother; while the butler took her to play with the hound Uffin all morning, and they had gotten to know each other well.Haiwen was surprised that the housekeeper would be willing to play with the children, he thought the housekeeper would hate such things.He felt more and more that Dreyer's character was changing, he seemed to be no longer so harsh, and there were many smiles like a kind old man on his face.

Afterwards, he introduced Hyacinth and said, "This is your future mother." However, Hyacinth preferred to be addressed with the Mill sisters, after all, they couldn't find out how old they were.Finally, Haven introduced Violet, and he led Mir to Violet's side, and Mir immediately shrank behind Haiwen's legs.Haven felt that she was afraid.

"Don't be afraid, Mir." He pulled Mirr forward, but the boy held on tight to his leg. "This is Violet, and it will be your teacher in the future."

Violet saluted very formally and said, "I am honored, Miss Ambleside."

But Mir shook her head vigorously and said, "No!" She shivered behind Haven, and Haven realized that she was afraid of violets—why only violets?

He picked Mir up, made her look at Violet, and asked her, "My daughter, tell me, what are you afraid of?"

After Mir glanced at Violet, he quickly turned his head away, as if he saw something horrifying.When Haven asked again and again, he pointed at Violet with her little finger.

She was referring to the burn on Violet's face.

At that moment, Haven saw that Violet's eyes lost focus.

Chapter 76: Godmother

Chapter 76: Godmother

Haiwen was very angry at first, but he didn't explode immediately.He was very puzzled, why Mir was only afraid of Violet - obviously Hyacinth also had a brand on his face?

And does Xiao Mier really understand the meaning of that brand?

So he asked Hyacinth, saying, "Why can you and Mir live in harmony?"

Hyacinth tugged at her skin, her bronze-colored skin was full of elasticity. "Because I touched her. I taught her to sing, and she stared at me and asked me what happened to the scar on my face. I said, it was done by a bad person, and then let her touch it— Like this." She said and demonstrated, kneading her face like dough.Both Islet and Haven laughed; the butler felt that he was not in harmony with the atmosphere, so he looked out of the window; Violet stared at Hyacinth, with a straight face, and said:

"But I didn't let her touch it. During class, she asked me about the stamen branding. I reprimanded her."

"Then that's the reason." Haiwen said, "Violet, the more you care about that scar, the deeper it will hurt you, not to mention that everyone treats you as family, I hope you..."

At this time, Violet said in a very sad tone: "My lord, you don't understand."

"I don't know?"

"You are Hyacinth's first master after becoming a bed slave. In other words, she doesn't know what the stamen on her face represents. But I'm different! I'd rather cut off a layer of face than..." Haiwen She had never heard her speak so loudly to herself, and Violet obviously felt that her attitude was very rude, so she apologized halfway through her speech, "Sorry, my lord. Please allow me to leave first." She bowed and turned to leave.

Haiwen sighed and didn't stop her.After that, he decided to take Mir to meet Smiley Cat.He intends to introduce each of his family and friends to Mir.

Master Cat is still lying in that room.Haiwen knocked on the door, and a weak "Come in" came from inside, then Haimen gently pushed the door open, and walked in with Xiao Mier in his arms.

Hai Wen felt that Smiley Cat was getting more and more haggard every day.His face was gray and his stomach was holding back a lot.Isrit put some incense in his room, so the original stench can no longer be smelled.His hair was growing a little, but no one combed it.

Little Mill hugged Haiwen's neck tightly, turned his back and didn't dare to look at the smiling cat.At this time, Master Cat asked, "Who is this child?"

"My adopted daughter, her father died in the war." Haven then said to Mirsalu, "Son, this is Smiley Cat. Come and see him."

Mirsalu turned her head and looked at the smiling cat.Master Cat's expression was embarrassing and sad, he squeezed out a smile like a forgotten clown, but Mirsalu was scared to cry.The child burst into tears and buried his face in Haven's shoulder.

"Now I only have the ability to scare a crying child, my lord." The smiling cat lay on the bed and smiled, "If she is disobedient in the future, bring her to see me, ha!"

Haiwen sighed, and said to Mirsalu: "My child, this is Spike, the smiling ranger, the most powerful person here..."

"Not anymore," interrupted the cat on the bed.

"It is now, and it will be in the future." Haiwen continued, "He can jump onto the room and kill ten gangsters with a single knife; now he is only injured. In the future, he will stand up again, and when the time comes Sometimes you will watch him leave the hospital bed and become a mighty ranger again. Then you will understand what it means to be strong in a man. Son, go and say hello to Lord Spike."

"Hello, Spike," she said through tears.

"Hello, little girl," he said with a smile.

Then Mirsalu leaned against Haven's ear and whispered, "Can I go now? Dad!" In fact, the room was very quiet, and she spoke very loudly, so everyone could hear her.

The smiling cat smiled helplessly, waved his hands and said, "Let's go!"

Hai Wen also smiled and said, "I'll come back in a few days, Master Cat, is there anything you want to eat?"

"Get some fruit wine, something sweeter."

"it is good."

After saying goodbye to Smiley Cat, Haven took Mirsalu to find Violet.He just walked to the door, and before he knocked on the door, Violet opened the door for him. "My lord, what are your orders?" She lowered her head and said.

Hearing that her voice was a little hoarse, Haiwen knew that she had just cried. "Head up," he said.

Violet hesitated for a moment, then raised her head.Sure enough, her eyes were red.

"Can I go in?" he asked Violet.

"Please." Violet said and got out of the way.

Violet and Hyacinth live in a house with two single beds, a washbasin, a hanger and a table.There are many notes on the table with neat handwriting, obviously Violet is reviewing her homework.He moved a chair and sat down, letting his daughter sit on his lap.Violet stood next to him, hands folded, very prim.

"You...you may have a lot of bad memories, Violet. But I don't mind, and I don't think there is anything dirty and ugly about you. I hope you can forget the brand on your face like Hyacinth, Live well." He didn't know if what he said was appropriate, because he didn't know what happened to Violet in the past.He couldn't ask, that would be too cruel.

"As I said, I'm not the same as Hyacinth," she whispered. "Hyacinth is still a virgin, and I'm already...you are my sixth master, my lord. was sold once."

Then she must have suffered a lot in the past.Haven didn't know what to say.

"I wanted to keep it from you, but you are so kind to me, I can't bear to lie to you." She didn't cry again, she just explained the fact calmly, "So it's only natural that Miss hates me, no one Don't hate me, beggars think I'm dirty."

Haiwen laughed instead, and he asked his daughter, "Do you think she's dirty?"

Mirsalu didn't disappoint him.The little girl jumped off his lap and gave Violet a big hug.Violet was flattered, she knelt down on one knee, gently stroked Mirsalu's head, and asked her: "Miss, you..." Before she finished speaking, Little Mir stood up on tiptoe and kissed the brand on her face.So Violet hugged Mirsalu tightly, crying silently.

After a moment, she let go of Mirsalu and said sadly, "Maybe she just doesn't understand what I mean by 'dirty'."

"Then why do you want her to understand?" Haiwen asked back, "That kind of meaning shouldn't appear, right?"

Violet finally nodded silently.So Haven made up his mind, and he said: "Violet, from now on, you will be the godmother of Mirthalu Ambside. You are responsible for teaching her to read and write, and how to be a good person. This will also become your new identity of."

"No, my lord, I..."

"I order you to do so." Haven was cruel this time, "Mirsalu, this is Violet, your godmother. Give her a salute."

"Master Godmother." Mirsalu bowed to Violet.After being stunned for a moment, Violet nodded back and said, "I'm honored, child."

Haiwen nodded and said: "From now on, you are not allowed to consider yourself a slave, nor are you allowed to have such thoughts. Your identity is my daughter's godmother. If you have the slightest idea of ​​discord with your identity, it is an insult to your daughter, and it is also an insult to your daughter." Insulting my father, do you understand?"

"Yes, my lord." Mirsalu's godmother said solemnly.

Chapter 77: Land Distribution and the Mustang Town Classroom

Chapter 77: Land Distribution and the Mustang Town Classroom

The next day, Hai Wen went to direct the police to go to morning exercises early in the morning.After the rain and the wind and cold, he put on a thick coat, and then gave orders on the playground.After these days of training, the police already have some appearance.Smiley Cat probably won't be able to serve as an instructor for a long time, so Haven has to choose a new person to train them.

He originally wanted Fassnut to come, but although the young man is very capable, his qualifications are too low and he is very light-hearted.Let him be an instructor, an old fritter like Jon will definitely be unhappy.So he appointed Jon as the acting instructor, and then appointed Fasnat as his new bodyguard.

The mayor's bodyguard is a very delicate position.If it is said that he has real power, he does not have it, because he cannot command anyone.But it would be wrong to say that he has a low position and little power, because the previous Smiley Cat was the mayor's bodyguard.In the whole Wild Horse Town, no one is in awe of him.

Therefore, Fasnat is still Jon's subordinate in name, but in fact, Jon can't order Fasnat, and he is vaguely restricted by him.

After that, Fasnat became Haven's new guard.Master Cat is gone, someone needs to take care of him.

After the training, everyone had some breakfast together, and many policemen came to ask about Haiwen's condition or chat with him.At times like this, Haiwen has never put on airs as the mayor. He tries his best to get along with everyone and increase the cohesion of the group.After that, he came to the Yizheng Hall and continued to deal with land distribution.

Land allocation begins with the farms closest to Mustang Township.Yesterday we solved the problem of land distribution for more than [-] peasant households.However, the amount of land is limited, and the quality of each land is also different. To be as fair as possible, some subsidies or additional taxes are needed.Farmers are very sensitive to the word tax. Haiwen thinks that paying tax at this time will hurt everyone's enthusiasm, so he only provides subsidies, and the matter of tax will be discussed later.

There were also some problems in the land distribution on the first day, such as wrong enclosures, duplication of locations, and so on.There were also two members of the Yizheng Hall who quarreled with the farmers and almost fought.Haiwen severely criticized these two people, asking them to calm down and regard themselves as public servants of the people serving farmers. "Now, the peasant class is our foundation. They are the masters of the land, and they can even be said to be our masters." He explained to these people, "You must change the previous concept of 'mud legs' and sincerely serve the people. Serve. If you treat the people well, the people will give you back. If you look down on them or exploit them, those landlords on the Crooked Neck Tree are your role models.”

Haiwen discussed with several cadres and worked out a set of land distribution plan procedures.Including: door-to-door notification, rule explanation, going to the fields with farmers, enclosing land and setting up bids, re-negotiation and other processes.And everyone has the experience of the first day, and they must be able to complete the task more quickly on the second day.From the next day, people will go to farms farther away, and they may have to live outside at night.Haiwen prepared a business trip salute for them, as well as allowances, and asked them to do things well, and someone would review the work situation in the future to ensure that it was implemented.If you do well, you will be rewarded, and if you go wrong, you will be held accountable.

After the meeting, everyone set off immediately.Old Ramon was not in good health, so he stopped running around. He had to stay in the council hall to receive the farmers who came to inquire about land distribution.Everyone except him is on a business trip.

I have to hire some more people.Haiwen thought to himself, these people are far from enough.

Afterwards he had lunch at home, and in the afternoon he was going to teach people.

Because there are too many people coming to class, he can't continue to teach at home.So he moved the classroom to a temple in the north of the city, where he gave lectures and publicized his ideas.There are only two monks in the Sea God Temple in the north of the city, both of whom worship the Sea God.These two people usually don't receive any incense money, and their lives are very poor, so when Haiwen asked to rent the venue, they agreed immediately.In the end, Hai Wen settled the venue with a few silver coins.

So he notified his students to come here for class.The housekeeper was not interested in this matter, and he didn't need to learn to write and read, so he didn't come; Isrit had to do the housework in the house in the afternoon, and even prepared things for the two-day trip to the south, so he didn't come; Nobuko was fishing with a certain dog somewhere, but disappeared; only Violet was idle, so Haiwen asked her to wear a veil and come out to class; finally he brought his daughter, and let her sit at the front.

The classroom was set at the entrance of the temple. Haiwen asked people to clean the hall, and then covered it with thatch, and let the students sit on the ground.This time the number of students who came to attend the lecture was much less—in fact, most poor people do not have such a strong desire for knowledge, and they came to the lecture for the first time just because of curiosity.However, there are also some familiar faces left behind, most of whom are young people who are full of enthusiasm and eager for change, so they are also very curious about new knowledge.Haiwen intends to promote the students with better performance to the council hall, but he doesn't plan to say it now, he wants to see how these people usually look like first.

First of all, he invited Violet with a veil to the stage and introduced to people: "This is my daughter's godmother, Ms. Violet. She is a female scholar from the south. He is my teaching assistant and may be here in the future. Your teachers. Students, say hello to your teachers."

Today, Violet is not only wearing a veil, but also a dark blue robe of a southern scholar. This dress is solemn and elegant. After wearing it, she can't take too many steps, so she has to keep her posture when she walks.She also tied her hair with a gray ribbon that symbolized a scholar, and around her neck was a silver bell with a bell prepared for him by Haven. These things really reminded the wearer to pay attention to their posture at all times, and making the bell too loud meant disrespect.

Violet used to have a correct posture, and she had a bookish air; wearing this outfit, she looked like a southern scholar.

So the students shouted: "I met Ms. Violet" or "Ms. Violet is good", "Teacher is good".Haven had greeted Violet before, and she could handle this scene.Then Haiwen asked Violet to try to give a cultural lesson to everyone, and Violet behaved very calmly.She is not stage-frightened, she behaves dignifiedly, speaks clearly, and can explain everything clearly.Maybe it's her talent?Haiwen thought to himself, if she was born in my time, she would definitely be a very good teacher.

About an hour later, Hai Wen felt that it was time to dismiss the get out of class, so he slapped the students for a 10-minute break.Afterwards, he and Violet came to the backyard of the temple lobby, and he asked Violet, "How does it feel?"

Violet took off her veil, and the serious expression on her face faded. She stroked her chest and whispered, "My lord, my legs are weak."

Haven couldn't help laughing, and Violet laughed too. "I thought you were more than capable," he said.

Violet shook her head and said, "I'm too scared."

"Just get used to it, Violet, do you like this job?"

She pondered for a while and said, "I don't like it much, but I don't hate it either. I just think the children are cute, and I feel that I have the responsibility to teach them well."

"That's all right—it'll be your main job after that, Violet."

Violet was startled, and asked, "What about the work at home?"

"Islet is here, otherwise there will be Hyacinth." Haiwen said that Hyacinth laughed, "It's time for her to learn how to work, and it's good to exercise."

"Yes, my lord."

So the afternoon class went on happily.Later, Haiwen taught the students an agricultural lesson and an ideological and moral lesson.At about four o'clock he dismissed the students and said he would continue studying here the next afternoon.He asked students and teachers to say goodbye one by one, so as to cultivate a teacher-student relationship of mutual respect.After that, Violet took his daughter home, while Haven continued to stroll outside.Thinking about tomorrow: Tomorrow he was going to have Violet and old Ramon come to teach the children, and old Ramon had a lot to teach.

And he himself has other things to do tomorrow.

The appointed day of judgment is almost upon us.He thought to himself, it's time to expose all the unjust, false and wrongly convicted cases in the prison.

Chapter 78: Judgment on a Snowy Night

Chapter 78: Judgment on a Snowy Night

He had promised this Judgment Day when he first went to prison.He promised people that if he is still a judge in a month, then he will reverse the case for these people.Now is the time for him to fulfill his promise.

He had been preparing for this before.

The next morning, he prepared the files and selected the court—right on the square of the Council Hall, he wanted everyone to witness this just trial.He ordered his servants to move the files and set up the tables and chairs; then he told the jailer to tell the prison guard that after the bell was rung, all the prisoners would be released and come to the Yizheng Hall for trial.

After everything was ready, it was eight o'clock in the morning, and he asked someone to ring the big bell.The bell echoed in the sky of Mustang Town, and people came here curiously.

Haven ordered the servants to maintain order—most of the police team followed Old Garcia and the others to divide the land, and he was short of manpower.Then he had to send someone to Charles' house to borrow some helpers.

After waiting for the scene to quiet down a bit, Haven said to the people: "People of Mustang Town! Today I will fulfill my promise."

The people below whispered to each other, and everyone obviously didn't know what Haiwen's promise meant.So he explained what he wanted to reverse the case for the criminals.After he finished speaking, a man with a red nose shouted: "All criminals deserve to die!" After he finished speaking, many people echoed him. They shook their arms and shouted loudly, demanding that Haiwen punish criminals with severe punishment.But Haiwen shouted loudly: "Shut up! The criminal law is not a trick! It's not for you to have fun. You people who make a fuss must have no relatives who have been wronged and imprisoned, right?"

People stopped booing, but an old man rushed out of the crowd and knelt down in front of him, saying: "My lord, please reverse the case for my son!"

Haiwen went over to help him up and said, "Today is a must. If your son is really wronged, I will make him avenged. If he is really guilty, I will not tolerate it."

"Thank you, my lord!" The old man raised his head, with a large bruise on his forehead.

Then the jailer brought the prisoners out.Haiwen watched the jailer walking in front, with a string of skeleton-like people behind him tied with ropes.They were ragged and skinny, and although Haven had ordered the jailers to improve the quality of life of these people, apparently the effect was minimal.These people are not so obvious when they are huddled in the darkness of the prison, but when they walk together in the street together, they look very scary.They are like a bunch of ghosts that come out during the day. Many people dare not look at them, and they also bow their heads and have no face to see people.This string of prisoners is like a scar carved on the face of Mustang Town.

There are a total of 37 prisoners waiting to have their case overturned, which is quite a number considering the population of Mustang Town of 2000.There were men, women and children here, and many of them were too weak to walk. Haiwen asked the jailer to take them into the council hall to find a place to settle them down, get some warm food to eat, and interrogate them one by one.

There was freshly baked bread and hot porridge in the restaurant next door, and the guards came back with these after a while.At this time, there were bursts of crying in the Yizheng Hall. Hai Wen walked in and saw that people were carrying food, but no one dared to move.So he asked, "Why don't you eat?"